US Airways April revenue measure down 4 percent
US Airways says April per-seat revenue fell 4 percent, even as traffic rose
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) -- US Airways saw a key measure of revenue fell 4 percent in April, a decline seen by other airlines as well.
US Airways didn't specify a reason for the drop in revenue from each seat flown one mile, although it said Friday that it had "unpredictable operational challenges that were created by the sequester-related furloughs of Federal Aviation Administration employees."
On Thursday, Delta Air Lines said the same revenue measure fell 2 percent.
US Airways traffic rose 4.4 percent for the month, boosted by a 6.6 percent gain in domestic traffic. Capacity for the month rose 3.1 percent.
Because US Airways traffic grew faster than it added seats, occupancy on its planes rose 1.1 percentage point to 83.6 percent.
For the first four months of the year, US Airways traffic has risen 4.3 percent. Flying capacity is up 1.8 percent. Occupancy on its planes has risen 2 percentage points to 82.8 percent.
US Airways Group Inc. is the nation's fifth-biggest airline. It is aiming to close its proposed merger with American Airlines later this year.
