In March 2023, scheduled passenger and cargo airlines based in the US added over 2,500 jobs, while the employment rate remained about 8.2% clear of pre-pandemic March 2019.
According to data released by the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), the United States airline industry added 2,544 workers in March, bringing the total number of airline employees to 793,779.
This is a 0.32% increase compared to February 2023, which had 791,235 workers. It also shows a very positive increase compared to March 2019, before the pandemic, which had 733,884 workers employed by US-based carriers.
Air travel recovery and job creation
The US is home to over 20 major carriers, handling over 16 million flights every year. According to figures published by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), global passenger traffic in March 2023 reached 88% of pre-pandemic levels.