US air ticket sales exceeded $8 billion for the first time since January 2020, according to the Airlines Reporting Corp. (ARC). The company said ARC-accredited travel agency air ticket sales totaled $8.4 billion in May 2022, a 135% year-over-year increase from May 2021. Month over month, May 2022 results showed:
  • Total sales increased 8%.
  • Total passenger trips increased 1%.
  • US domestic trips decreased 1%.
  • International trips increased 6%.
Leisure agencies are showing particular strength heading into the summer months. Year over year, the share of leisure-focused agency tickets sold through May for travel planned between June and August increased 52% compared with the share of corporate and online ticket agency sales. Steve Solomon, vice president of global customers and data products. said demand remains strong for air travel heading into the summer travel season. Now that the US inbound international testing requirement has been dropped, he said, “we anticipate international passenger trips to continue their upward trajectory.” International trips settled by ARC in May 2022 increased 82% year-over-year to 8.4 million, while US domestic trips increased 28% to 14.3 million over the same period. Total passenger trips settled in May increased 43% year-over-year from 15.8 million to 22.8 million. The average US roundtrip air travel ticket cost $628 in May 2022. Electronic miscellaneous documents (EMD) sales increased 145% year over year to $17,112,669. EMD transactions increased 64% to 244,702 over the same period. EMD are ancillary sales like baggage fees.