First Quarter Air Ticket Sales by U.S. Travel Agents Running 6 Percent Ahead of Last Year

Ticket Transactions Up Compared to Same Period 2011

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Apr 12, 2012, 03:25 ET

ARLINGTON, Va., April 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- 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 increased 6.57 percent* year-over-year in the first quarter of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011, and 18 percent over the same period in 2010. January through March 2012 ticket sales totalled $23.3 billion, compared to $21.9 billion in 2011, and $19.8 billion in 2010.

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Year-to-date passenger segments for the first quarter of 2012 increased slightly by 0.80 percent – at 86.8 million segments, compared to 86.2 million in 2011 – while reflecting a -0.87 percent decrease over the same period in 2010. Ticket transactions for January through March 2012 were up, at 1 percent compared to the same period in 2011, while up by 0.69 percent over the same period in 2010.

More detailed information is available at https://www.arccorp.com/news/stat/2012-03.jsp

About ARC:

As the financial backbone of the U.S. travel industry, ARC enables commerce among travel agencies, airlines, and travel suppliers, and offers them secure and accurate financial settlement services. More than 16,000 travel agencies and 190 airlines use the company's transaction settlement services that, in 2011, totaled more than $82 billion in value. ARC also supplies transactional data to organizations, facilitating better business decisions through fact-based market analyses. Established in 1984, ARC is headquartered in Arlington, Va. For more information, visit www.arccorp.com.

Notes for Editors:

*Ticket Sales

Results based on sales data ending March 31, 2012 from 13,914 U.S. retail and corporate travel agencies, satellite ticket printing offices, and online travel agencies.
Does 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.

SOURCE ARC