The continued availability of cheap airplane tickets and cheap vacation packages will play key roles in the number of passengers traveling on American airlines climbing by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) forecasted 3.5 percent in 2010.
The FAA believes U.S. carriers will pass the one billion passenger mark in 2021, two years sooner than previously projected.
The agency stressed in its annual travel forecast that passenger growth makes the move to a new satellite based air traffic control system vs. the current radar based technology all the more critical.
The FAA is predicting international air traffic to increase faster than domestic travel in 2011. It expects U.S. airline to fly almost 8 percent more international passengers compared with a 3.5 percent increase in domestic passengers.
The International Air Transport Association, which represents major worldwide carriers, forecasts 3.3 billion travelers flying worldwide by 2013, an increase of 33 percent from 2009. China is expected to be the driving force behind this growth.
Increases in the price of airline tickets is predicted to slow in 2011, with the FAA forecasting travelers on major U.S. airlines paying 2 percent more on domestic flights and 5 percent more for international flights than last year. Rates are expected to fall modestly in the long run according to the FAA. www.cheapfares.com