On a windswept dune along North Carolina’s Outer Banks
on Dec. 17, 1903, a dream of the ages became reality as the Wright brothers
made the world’s first powered flight. With Orville at the controls
and Wilbur on the ground, the plane made four flights that day, with the
longest one covering 852 feet in 59 seconds — attaining an estimated speed of
30 miles an hour. To commemorate the centennial of this momentous event
in aviation history, the Census Bureau today presents facts and figures
on air transportation. Where it All Began
3,171
Estimated population of Kitty Hawk, N.C., in 2002. Kitty Hawk was the
site of the Wright brothers’ first flight. According to the 1900
census, the latest taken at the time of the first flight, there were 4,757
people living in Dare County, where Kitty Hawk is located (in 2002, Dare
County’s population was more than 32,000).
<http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/population/001118.html>
<http://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/nc190090.txt>
<http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/population/000927.html>
Today’s Crowded Skies
612,000
Number of licensed airplane pilots. Among these —
• 244,000 have private pilot’s licenses.
• 121,000 are licensed to fly commercial aircraft.
• 145,000 are licensed to fly air transport planes.
• 34,000 are women.
• 87,000 are student pilots.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
$107 billion
Annual operating revenue for the U.S. airline industry.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
128,000
Number of jobs generated in 2001 by air transportation support services,
such as air traffic control and other airport operations. <http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/business_ownership/000926.html>
129,000
Number of people employed as airplane pilots and navigators.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
126,000
Number of aircraft engine mechanics — the people who keep the planes
running.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
19,000
Number of airports across the country. The majority of them (nearly 14,000)
are private.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
218,000
Number of general aviation (private) aircraft. In addition, there are
7,900 airliners.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
4,138
The total number of aircraft available for public use (i.e., federal,
state or local government-owned or leased aircraft). <http://www.bts.gov/publications/national_transportation_statistics/2002/html/table_general_aviation_profile.html>
9 million
Number of aircraft departures for the U.S. airline industry every year.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
86
Percentage of flights that departed from the nation’s airports on
time during the fourth quarter of 2002. Eighty-three percent arrived on
time.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
612 million
Number of paying passengers U.S. airlines carry annually. These air travelers
fly an average of 1,046 miles per trip. (Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical
Abstract of the United States: 2003.)
35 million
Number of passengers who used Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International
Airport in 2002, making it the nation’s busiest. (Source: soon-to-be-released
Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2003.)
3.2 million
Number of passengers who fly between New York and Fort Lauderdale annually,
making this route the nation’s busiest. (Source: soon-to-be-released
Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2003.)
Aerospace and Air Transportation Industries
449,000
The number of people employed in the aerospace product and parts manufacturing
industry in 2001. These employees worked out of 1,792 establishments.
<http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/business_ownership/000926.html>
90,000
Number of people employed as aerospace engineers.
(Source: soon-to-be-released Statistical Abstract of the United States:
2003.)
$135 billion
Total value of shipments in 2001 of manufactured aerospace products and
parts. <http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/m01as-1.pdf>
609,000
Number of people employed in the air transportation industry in 2001.
These employees worked out of 5,451 establishments. <http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/business_ownership/000926.html>
Aeronautical Records
24,987
Length in miles of the longest nonstop, unrefueled flight in history (by
Richard Rutan and Jeana Yeager in the experimental, home-built aircraft
Voyager in 1986). This marked the first time the world was ever circumnavigated
non-stop by air. (Courtesy of the National Aeronautic Association.)
2,193 mph
The speed record (measured in ground speed), set in 1976 by Capt. Eldon
W. Joersz of the U.S. Air Force. (Courtesy of the National Aeronautic
Association.)
314,750
The highest altitude, in feet, ever reached by an aircraft. The record
was set in 1962 by Maj. Robert White of the U.S. Air Force in a high-performance
research aircraft. (Courtesy of the National Aeronautic Association.) |