The US Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) has reported that US airlines’ systemwide (domestic and international) scheduled service load factor – a measure of the use of airline capacity – was 83.0 percent in January, unchanged from December, seasonally adjusted. Seasonal adjustment allows the comparing of monthly load factors to all other months.
The January 2015 load factor was below the all-time seasonally-adjusted high of 84.4 reached in January 2014. Load factor is a measure of the use of aircraft capacity that compares the system use, measured in Revenue Passenger-Miles (RPMs) as a proportion of system capacity, measured in Available Seat-Miles (ASMs).
RPMs and ASMs fell from December to January but because both declined by 0.7 percent, the load factor remained at 83.0.