United Continental traffic falls in January

NEW YORK — United Continental Holdings Inc., the world's biggest airline company, said its traffic fell last month but it still got more money from passengers.

The money that United and Continental made to fly a paying passenger one mile — an important revenue measure — rose by 8.5 to 9.5 percent in January. That's nearly double the rate it rose in December, and it indicates fare hikes are accelerating.

Traffic across United and Continental's network fell 3.2 percent, the company said late Tuesday. Mainline traffic fell 3.7 percent, while regional traffic was up 1.3 percent. Traffic fell at a faster rate in the U.S. than abroad, as the airline significantly pulled back its flying at home.

Capacity, or the number of available seats, fell 6.4 percent in its domestic network, while capacity increased 0.2 percent internationally.

As United and Continental reduced domestic flights, the remaining flights were fuller. On U.S. routes, the carrier's load factor rose 1.7 percentage points to 81 percent. On international flights, occupancy fell 2.5 percentage points to 76.1 percent.

United Continental is based in Chicago.

Scientific American

• United Continental traffic falls in January