Source: US DOT

June 2023 Airline Employment Infographic

U.S. Airline Total Number of Employees (both Full-Time and Part-Time)

U.S. airline industry (passenger and cargo airlines combined) employment increased to 801,801 workers in June 2023, 1,992 (0.25%) more workers than in May 2023 (799,809) and 58,431 (7.86%) more than in pre-pandemic June 2019 (743,370).

U.S. scheduled-service passenger airlines employed 525,334 workers in June 2023 or 66% of the industry-wide total. Passenger airlines added 3,481 employees in June 2023 for the twenty-sixth consecutive month of job growth dating back to May 2021. United Air Lines led scheduled passenger carriers, adding 1,094 employees; Delta added 965, and American Airlines added 501.

U.S. cargo airlines employed 271,624 workers in June 2023, 34% of the industry total. Cargo carriers lost 1,489 employees in June. FedEx, the leading air cargo employer, decreased employment by 1,504 jobs.

Line chart showing total U.S. airline industry employment for June 2021 through June 2023

Scheduled passenger airlines add 3,428 full-time equivalents in June 2023 for 26th consecutive month of job growth

U.S. Airline Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs)

BTS calculates FTEs by dividing the number of part-time employees by 2 and adding that figure to the number of full-time employees. The June 2023 industry-wide numbers include 690,674 full-time and 111,127 part-time workers for a total of 746,238 FTEs, an increase from May of 1,797 FTEs (0.24%). June 2023’s total number of FTEs remains 9.15% above pre-pandemic June 2019’s 683,656 FTEs.

The 26 U.S. scheduled passenger airlines reporting data for June 2023 employed 498,509 FTEs, 3,428 FTEs (0.69%) more than in May 2023. June 2023’s total number of scheduled passenger airline FTEs is 48,795 FTEs (10.85%) above pre-pandemic June 2019. Data by passenger carrier category can be found in the accompanying tables.

U.S. cargo airlines employed 242,964 FTEs in June 2023, down 1,638 FTEs (0.67%) from May 2023. U.S. cargo airlines have increased FTEs by 13,219 (5.75%) since pre-pandemic June 2019.

Line chart showing employees at U.S. scheduled passenger airlines for June 1990 through June 2023

Reporting Notes

Data are compiled from monthly reports filed with BTS by commercial air carriers as of August 7, 2023. Additional airline employment data and previous releases can be found on the BTS website. The month-to-month numbers are not seasonally adjusted.

Passenger, cargo, and charter airlines that operate at least one aircraft that has more than 60 seats or the capacity to carry a payload of passengers, cargo, and fuel weighing more than 18,000 pounds must report monthly employment statistics. Regulations require U.S. airlines to report employment numbers for employees who worked or received pay for any part of the pay period(s) ending nearest the 15th day of the month.

See the tables that accompany this release on the BTS website for detailed data since 2015 (Tables 1-15) and industry summary monthly data since 1990. Additional individual airline numbers are available on the BTS airline employment web page. The web page provides full-time and part-time employment numbers by carrier by month from 1990 through June 2023.

Missing carriers: 2HQ (Elite Airways) and AMQ (Ameristar Air Cargo).

The next update for U.S. airline employment is scheduled for Monday, September 11, 2023.