U.S. Travel Agencies Finish Third Quarter With Air Ticket Sales Down 1.31 Percent Versus 2014

ARLINGTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Airlines Reporting Corp. (ARC), the financial settlement link between airlines and travel sellers, reported today that the consolidated dollar value of airline tickets sold by U.S.-based travel agencies decreased 1.31 percent^* in the third quarter of 2015, compared to the same period in 2014, totaling $69.7 billion vs. $70.6 billion. September 2015 ticket sales decreased 3.1 percent to $7.3 billion against the same month last year.

Ticket transactions increased by 5.6 percent in 2015 vs. 2014 to 120.4 million. Passenger segments decreased 0.99 percent to 2.21 billion, compared to 2.23 billion in 2014.

Electronic Miscellaneous Document (EMD) sales comprised $12 million of the total sales from January to September 2015 vs. $1.9 million over the same period in 2014 and $1.9 million of the September 2015 sales compared to $463,748 in September 2014. EMD transactions increased to 116,173 in 2015 versus 34,845 in 2014.

More detailed information is available at https://www.arccorp.com/data.jsp.

About ARC:

ARC powers the U.S.-based travel industry with premier business solutions, travel agency accreditation services, process and financial management tools, and powerful data analytics. In 2014, ARC settled $89.6 billion worth of carrier ticket transactions for more than 9,400 travel agencies with 13,000 points of sale. By providing world-class business services and products, ARC enables participating agencies and 200 carriers to focus on what's important—increasing their revenue. Established in 1984, ARC is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. For more information, please visit www.arccorp.com.

Notes for Editors:

*Ticket Sales

• Results based on monthly sales data ending September 30, 2015, from 13,102 U.S. retail and corporate travel agency locations, satellite ticket printing offices and online travel agencies.
• Results do not include sales of tickets purchased directly from airlines.
• Total sales are equal to the total amount paid for a ticket, which includes taxes and fees.
• EMDs include fees for products and services such as upgraded seats, checked luggage, an unaccompanied minor, pet-in-cabin, etc.

©2015 Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC). All rights reserved.

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