US passenger traffic plunged 60.1% in 2020 to its lowest level since the mid-1980s.
According to US Transportation Department data there were only 368 million passengers last year, compared to 922.6 million in 2019.
The DOT said domestic air travel was down 58.7%, while international travel fell 70.4%.
The pandemic continues to heavily impact air travel and trade group Airlines for America doesn’t expect a full recovery until 2023 or even 2024.
It said the nine largest US airlines lost nearly $50 billion before taxes in 2020.
Capacity based on the number of flights offered by US airlines is still down about 45%.
US airlines are expected to get a new round of financial assistance worth $15 billion by the end of next month when current payroll support funding expires.
That is expected to last until the end of September.
It is part of a $1.9 trillion package proposed by President Joe Biden, which is expected to be finalized by early March.
Written by Ray Montgomery, US Editor
