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Airline Traffic and Capacity Data

Electronic Records Reference Report

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Introduction

This reference report provides an overview of some of the electronic data records in the custody of the National Archives that pertain to airline traffic, capacity, and quality performance. The National Archives also has electronic records relating to other aspects of aviation, such accidents and air traffic controllers.  Descriptions of these records can be found in the National Archives Catalog.  See the Related Information for additional links to airline and air traffic related statistics and data available on various Federal agencies’ websites.

Descriptions of the series and data files listed in this report are in the National Archives Catalog. The National Archives Catalog can be searched by title, National Archives Identifier, type of archival material, or keyword.

Some of the series and files listed in this report are accessible online:

Researchers may order copies of these computerized data files for a cost-recovery fee and analyze the records directly, using whatever hardware and software available to them. For more information see: Ordering Information for Electronic Records.

In addition to the number of data files listed below, there is paper technical documentation that is needed to use the data files.  The technical documentation includes layouts and code lists.

Some of the series below have business confidentiality restrictions.  You need permission from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) in order to access these airline data files. Some information about accessing restricted data is available on the BTS website at: https://www.bts.gov/topics/airlines-and-airports/number-317-clarification-regarding-access-restricted-confidential.  Please contact NARA staff for more details.

Record Group 197: Records of the Civil Aeronautics Board

  • Competition among Domestic Air Carriers Files, 1962 – 1965
         National Archives Identifier: 616414
     Data Files: 26 (restricted)
    This series contains annual and quarterly detail data files as well as annual and quarterly summary data files giving statistics concerning competition among domestic air carriers on identical routes.
     
  • Denied Boarding Files,  1978 – 1980
    National Archive Identifier: 627213
    Online Access: Download
    This series contains monthly statistics on the number of passengers denied boarding on domestic and international flights by reporting air carrier.
     
  • Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1970 – 1984
    Other Titles: Data Bank 23, ER-586 Service Segment Data
    National Archives Identifier: 19077075
    Online Access: Download
    This series includes statistics for the totals of passenger and cargo ton enplanements and deplanements for each pair of points served or scheduled to be served by a single stage of at least one flight within the reported time period. 
     
  • Domestic and International Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1985 – 1989
    Other Titles: Data Bank 23T, ER-586 Service Segment Data
    National Archives Identifier: 18575071
    Online Access: Download
    This series includes statistics for the totals of passenger and cargo ton enplanements and deplanements for each pair of points served or scheduled to be served by a single stage of at least one flight within the reported time period. This series is in part the successor to the series “Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1970 – 1984” (National Archives Identifier 19077075).
     
  • Nonstop Airline Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1980 – 1983
    Other Titles: Data Bank 26T-9, Nonstop Market Report National Archives Identifier: 19027449
    Online Access: Download
    This series provides totals of passenger and cargo ton enplanements and deplanements for each pair of points served or scheduled to be served by a single stage of at least one flight within the monthly period.

Record Group 398: General Records of the Department of Transportation
 

  • Commuter Air Carrier Statistics Files, 1969 – 2002

    National Archives Identifier: 635655
    Online Access: Download
    This series includes online origin and destination data (Form 298-C, Schedule T-1) and reports of flight and traffic statistics (Form 298-C, Schedule A-1).

  • Airline Service Quality Performance Files, 1969 – 2005
     National Archive Identifier: 635729
     Online Access: Download     Search (years 1997 and 1998 only)
    This series contains the scheduled and actual arrival and departure time tables for scheduled domestic nonstop flights by the largest U.S. airlines.

  • Northeast Corridor Intercity Travel Survey (NECITS), 10/1969 - 4/1970
    National Archives Identifier: 1272711
    Online Access: Download
    This series consists of data from a stratified random sample survey on the volume, origin and destination, and characteristics of trips by automobile, bus, air and air taxi, and rail between major metropolitan areas in the northeast corridor of the United States.  This series includes:

    • Air Survey of Major Airlines and Air Taxies, November-December 1969
      National Archives Identifier: 1272721
      Online Access: Download
      This file contains interview data on airline passengers, including flight dates; origins and destinations; amount of baggage; trip purpose; modes, cost, and time of getting to and from the terminals; and type of ticket and fare. 

Record Group 467: Records of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration Transportation  

  • Combined Airline Service Segment and Nonstop Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1984 - 1989
    Other Titles: Data Bank 27T, Combined T-9 Nonstop Market Report, and ER-586 Service Segment Data
    National Archives Identifier: 19077170
    Online Access: Download
    This series provides totals of passengers enplaned and transported for each pair of points served or scheduled to be served by a single stage of at least one flight within the monthly period. This series is the successor to the series "Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1970-1984" (National Archives Identifier 19077075) and the series "Nonstop Airline Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1980-1983" (National Archives Identifier 19027449).

Record Group 570: Records of the Bureau of Transportation Statistics

  • Domestic Airline Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1990 – 2005
    Other Titles: Data Bank 28DM, T-100 Domestic Market Data
    National Archives Identifier: 19077207
    Online Access: Download
    This series contains data reported by U.S. air carriers operating between airports located within the boundaries of the United States and its territories. These data are often referred to as either market or on-flight Origin and Destination (O&D) records.  This series is the successor the series “Nonstop Airline Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 10/1980 – 12/1983” (National Archives Identifier 19027449).

  • Domestic Airline Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1990 – 2005
    Other Titles: Data Bank 28DS, T-100 Domestic Segment Data
    National Archives Identifier: 19077218
    Online Access: Download
    This series contains data reported by U.S. air carriers operating nonstop between airports located within the boundaries of the United States and its territories. This series is the successor to the series “Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1970 – 1984” (National Archives Identifier 19077075) and “Domestic and International Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1985 – 1989” (National Archives Identifier 18575071).
     
  • International Airline Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1990 - 2002
    Other Titles: Data Bank 28IM, T-100 International Market Data
    National Archives Identifier: 19078246
    Online Access: Download

    This series contains data reported by U.S. and foreign carriers. For the U.S. carriers, at least one point had to be outside the United States or in one of its territories. All foreign carrier data must have had at least one point in the United States or in one of its territories. This series is the successor to the series "Nonstop Airline Market Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 10/1980-12/1982 (National Archives Identifier 19027449).

  • International Airline Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1990 – 2002
    Other Titles: Data Bank 28IS, T-100 International Segment Data
    National Archives Identifier: 19078255
    Online Access: Download
    This series contains data reported by U.S. carriers operating nonstop between airports where at least one airport was located outside the boundaries of the United States and its territories.  This series is the successor to the series “Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1970 – 1984” (National Archives Identifier 19077075) and “Domestic and International Airline Service Segment Traffic and Capacity Data Files, 1985 – 1989” (National Archives Identifier 18575071).

  • Airline Financial, Traffic, and Capacity Data Files, 1957 – 2005
    Other Titles: Data Bank 10, Form 41 Reports, Yellow Book
    National Archives Identifier: 19078269
    Online Access: Download
    This series contains traffic and financial data files reported on Form 41 on a variety of schedules including: B-1, P-1, P-3, P-3(A), P-5, P-6, P-7, P-8, P-9, T-1, T-1(A), T-2, T-3, and T-6.
     

  • Origin and Destination Surveys (Data Banks 1, 1A, and 1B), 1/1968 - 12/2005
    Other Titles: Ticket Dollar Value Origin and Destination Surveys
    National Archives Identifier: 140135746
    Online Access: Download (for restricted data files, only the documentation is available for download)
    This series consists of data from surveys of domestic and international airline passenger traffic as reported each quarter by participating air carriers from the continuous 10-percent sample of airline tickets. The data include the full itinerary, fare paid, mileage for each itinerary segment, and city/airport codes.   

  • Directional Origin and Destination Surveys (Crossposted, Data Banks 2A and 2C), 1/1961 – 12/2001
    National Archives Identifier: 139298900
    Online Access: Download (for restricted data files, only the documentation is available for download)
    This series consists of data from surveys of domestic and international airline passenger traffic.  The files contain outbound and inbound passenger totals as reported by participating U.S air carriers from a continuous 10-percent sample of airline tickets. The agency derived these records from data reported in the "Origin and Destination Surveys (Data Banks 1, 1A, and 1B)" (National Archives Identifier 140135746).

  • Origin and Destination Survey City/Airport Nomenclature Files (Data Bank 5), 1/1969 – 12/2005
    National Archives Identifier: 139298902
    Online Access: Download
    This series consists of quarterly files that contain city/airport alphabetic and numeric codes, full name spelling (up to 30 characters), abbreviated name spelling (up to 20 characters), and geographic coordinates for all cities in flight itineraries reported in the Passenger Origin and Destination Survey files described under "Origin and Destination Surveys (Data Banks 1, 1A, and 1B)" (National Archives Identifier 140135746) and "Directional Origin and Destination Surveys (Crossposted, Data Banks 2A and 2C)" (National Archives Identifier 139298900).

Related Information

The following are links to some airline and air traffic related statistics and data available on various Federal agencies’ websites:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA): https://www.faa.gov/data_research/aviation_data_statistics/

Department of Transportation (DOT): https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/air-travel-consumer-reports

Through Data.gov: https://catalog.data.gov/dataset?tags=flight

Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS):

National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO): https://travel.trade.gov/outreachpages/outbound.general_information.outbound_overview.html

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February 2024

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