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Table 4-8M: Certificated Air Carrier Fuel Consumption and Travela

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  1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1991 1992 (R) 1993 (R) 1994 (R) 1995 (R) 1996 (R) 1997 (R) 1998 (R) 1999 (R) 2000 (R) 2001 (R) 2002 (R) 2003 (R) 2004 (R) 2005 (R) 2006 (R) 2007 2008 2009 2010
Number of aircraft 2,135 2,125 2,679 2,495 3,808 4,678 6,083 6,054 7,320 7,297 7,370 7,411 7,478 7,616 8,111 8,228 8,055 8,497 8,194 8,176 8,186 8,225 8,089 8,044 7,856 U U
Average kilometers flown per aircraft (thousands) 784 1,074 1,528 1,500 1,236 1,191 1,250 1,239 1,077 1,128 1,169 1,222 1,272 1,183 1,138 1,187 1,293 1,228 1,292 1,441 1,565 1,615 1,635 1,684 1,668 U U
Aircraft-Kilometers (millions)                                                      
Domestic operations 1,381 1,825 3,328 3,135 4,060 4,902 6,378 (R) 6,203 6,429 6,689 7,046 7,448 7,736 7,140 7,211 7,683 8,190 8,224 8,417 9,488 10,244 10,507 10,336 10,515 10,054 9,265 9,345
International operations 293 457 764 607 645 668 (R) 1,224 (R) 1,298 1,455 1,542 1,570 1,606 1,776 1,867 2,021 2,082 2,229 2,209 2,170 2,295 2,563 2,774 2,893 3,027 3,050 2,861 2,992
Fuel consumption (million liters)                                                      
Domestic operations (R) 7,398 14,721 (R) 30,318 28,610 32,249 38,289 (R) 46,228 (R) 43,002 (R) 43,903 45,273 47,320 48,498 49,919 51,700 50,358 54,853 56,272 52,496 48,916 49,520 53,339 52,904 51,839 51,791 48,021 42,924 42,608
International operations (R) 2,141 (R) 4,846 (R) 8,086 7,378 (R) 7,694 9,418 (R) 14,906 (R) 14,717 (R) 15,442 15,565 16,373 17,078 17,633 18,782 18,607 19,974 20,850 20,197 19,226 19,755 21,169 22,616 22,779 23,487 23,419 21,657 22,818
Aircraft-Kilometers flown per liters                                                      
Domestic operations 0.19 0.12 0.11 0.11 0.13 0.13 0.14 0.14 (R) 0.15 0.15 0.15 0.15 0.15 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.15 0.16 0.17 0.19 0.19 0.20 0.20 0.20 0.21 0.22 0.22
International operations 0.14 0.09 0.09 0.08 (R) 0.08 0.07 0.08 0.09 0.09 0.10 0.10 0.09 0.10 0.10 0.11 0.10 0.11 0.11 0.11 0.12 0.12 0.12 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13

KEY: R = revised; U = data are unavailable.

a Aircraft operating under 14 CFR 121 and 14 CFR 135.

NOTES

1.609344 kilometers = 1 mile.

3.785412 liters = 1 gallon.

SOURCES

Number of aircraft:

1960-65: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, FAA Statistical Handbook of Aviation, 1970 edition (Washington, DC: 1970), table 5.3.

1970-75: Ibid., FAA Statistical Handbook of Aviation, Calendar Year 1979 (Washington, DC: 1979), table 5.1.

1980-85: Ibid., FAA Statistical Handbook of Aviation, Calendar Year 1986 (Washington, DC: 1986), table 5.1.

1990-97: Ibid., FAA Statistical Handbook of Aviation, Calendar Year 1997 (Washington, DC: unpublished), personal communication, Mar. 19, 1999.

1998-2008: Aerospace Industries Association, Aerospace Facts and Figures (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), "Active U.S. Air Carrier Fleet", p. 94 and similar pages in earlier editions.

Aircraft-miles flown:

1960: Civil Aeronautics Board, Handbook of Airline Statistics 1969 (Washington, DC: 1970), part III, tables 2 and 13.

1965-1970: Ibid., Handbook of Airline Statistics 1973 (Washington, DC: 1974), part III, tables 2 and 13.

1975-1980: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Office of Airline Information, Air Carrier Traffic Statistics (Washington, DC: December 1976), pp. 4 and 14; and (December 1981), pp. 2 and 3.

1985: Ibid., Air Carrier Traffic Statistics (Washington, DC: Annual December Issues), pp. 2 and 3, line 27 plus line 50.

1990-2010: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Office of Airline Information, Air Carrier Traffic Statistics, available at http://www.bts.gov/xml/air_traffic/src/index.xml#CustomizeTable as of Aug. 17, 2011.

Fuel consumption:

1960-75: U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Office of Airline Information, personal communication, June 8, 2010.

1980-2010: Ibid., Fuel Cost and Consumption, available at http://www.bts.gov/xml/fuel/report/src/index.xml as of Aug. 16, 2011.




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