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Transportation

ARC: April Air Ticket Prices Remain Elevated

By Donna M. Airoldi / May 18, 2026 / Contact Reporter
Business Travel News on X

April air ticket prices remained high amid conflict in the Middle East and elevated oil prices, according to the latest monthly report from Airlines Reporting Corp.

The April average price for a U.S. domestic roundtrip ticket increased 16 percent year over year to $623, matching both the price and the increase reported in March 2026.

The average price for a domestic economy-class ticket in April increased 20 percent year over year to $566, while the average price for a domestic premium-class ticket was up 16 percent to $1,431. The month-over-month variance for each type of ticket, however, declined about 1 percent.

Corporate demand continued its recent turnaround, with the number of April trips sold by travel agencies with at least 70 percent self-reported corporate and government business counted by ARC up more than 4.5 percent year over year. This was the third consecutive month this data point increased after declining for 13 of the previous 15 months.

Total U.S. air ticket sales in April exceeded $10 billion, representing a nearly 15 percent increase year over year. The number of passenger trips were up more than 3 percent to nearly 26.5 million. Of those, 16.6 million were for domestic trips (up 2.5 percent compared with a year prior) and nearly 9.9 million were for international trips (up more than 4 percent).

New Distribution Capability transactions in April accounted for 20.1 percent of ARC-settled transactions, up from 19.6 percent in April 2025, with 1,197 travel agencies reporting NDC transactions.

"While April's average ticket prices were up year over year, month-over-month prices remained steady," ARC chief commercial officer Steve Solomon said in a statement. "We have another month of data demonstrating that traveler demand remains strong. Ticket prices and continued geopolitical uncertainty are not leading to a decline in the number of passenger trips."

RELATED: ARC: March Corp. Trips Rise, Ticket Prices Surge

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