Summary
- American Airlines carried 44.9 million passengers to/from Charlotte within the 12 months to September 2023, with a median seat load factor (SLF) of 85%.
- Orlando had probably the most passengers, with 79% connecting to other flights.
- Curaçao had the best SLF (95%), while Columbus, GA, had the bottom (57%); it has since been cut.
Within the 12 months to September 2023, probably the most recent month available to me, American and regional partner American Eagle carried 44.9 million passengers to, from, and over Charlotte. This relies on US Department of Transportation T-100 data. Some 173 non-stop routes were served: 137 domestic and 36 international.
The ten hottest markets
They’re shown in the next figure, with Orlando primary. Vital: the passenger numbers reflect all American’s passengers, whether point-to-point, transiting in Charlotte, or connecting at a unique hub (e.g., Charlotte-Dallas-Los Angeles or Charlotte-Philadelpia-London Heathrow).
Source: US DOT T-100. Figure: James Pearson
More information will be gleaned using the ‘Route Grader Report’ available through Cirium. Nearly seven in ten American’s passengers in the highest 10 markets transited to a different flight at Charlotte. Useless to say, virtually everyone did from Raleigh Durham (99%), with fewer than one in 4 doing so from Chicago O’Hare (24%).
As for primary, Orlando, 79% connected; just 21% of American’s passengers only flew between the 2 cities. The 469-mile (753 km) route was primarily served by the A321ceo (see photo below), A321neo, and 737-800 and had a median of 189 seats per flight.
US T-100 information shows that American typically filled 159 seats per flight for a median SLF of 84%. Put one other way, about 126 passengers transited elsewhere, with LaGuardia, Richmond, Memphis, Norfolk, and Las Vegas in the highest five.
Just 33 of the passengers per flight were P2P. It isn’t much, but it’s vital in achieving higher yields and contributes to a much higher SLF.
SLFs: winners and losers
It is important to not read an excessive amount of into SLFs without further context, because it is only one a part of the general performance puzzle. It’s at all times about how they’re achieved. Still, they will be interesting. The next figure shows American’s highest and lowest 10 routes by SLF. To make it clearer, I even have rounded them.
Source: US DOT T-100. Image: James Pearson
Just one US city – tiny Erie in Pennsylvania – is amongst the perfect performers by this easy metric. American filled about 93% of seats within the 12 months to September. Served double every day (each way) using the ERJ-145, the 476-mile (766 km) service had 68,000 passengers.
It filled 47 seats per departure, with about 37 passengers (79%) transiting over Charlotte. Not surprisingly, Orlando was the most well-liked origin and destination.
The 295-mile (475 km) link to Columbus, GA, on the border with Alabama, was American’s worst-performing route by SLF. It achieved 57% within the examined 12 months, 28 points lower than its average at Charlotte across all 137 routes.
Served double every day, it was only introduced in August 2021 (having been flown until 2003 by US Airways Express). American Eagle’s CRJ700s initially operated but later switched to the ERJ-145. Not surprisingly, the route ceased in April 2023.
What about Munich?
Notice just one long-haul route – Charlotte to Munich – was in the underside 10. Introduced by American in April 2019, it operated until March 2020 and returned in December 2021. Apart from some February weeks without flights, the route is served every day year-round using the 777-200ER.
Photo: Santi Rodriguez | Shutterstock
American carried about 156,000 roundtrip passengers within the 12 months to September 2023, but only filled three-quarters of the available seats. The recovery and shoulder months pulled Munich down, together with competing directly with Lufthansa for the P2P market. Nevertheless, given the reasonably small P2P market, each carriers broadly goal different passengers. It’s going to be good to see how Munich develops.
What do you make of all of it? Tell us within the comments section.