AIRLINES PREPARING FOR RECORD-SETTING LABOR DAY PERIOD

DALLAS» Airlines expect record crowds over the week-long Labor Day period, continuing a rise in travel that has boosted the airlines’ profits all year.

The trade group Airlines for America forecast Tuesday that 17.5 million passengers will fly on U.S. carriers between Aug. 28 and Sept. 3. That would be 2.5 million passengers per day and a 4% increase over the same week last year.

The busiest day is expected to be Friday, Aug. 30, when the group forecasts just under 3 million people will board U.S. airlines.

The industry group credits low fares, and analysts point to steady if unspectacular economic growth and low unemployment as other factors supporting demand for travel.

The airline group says carriers have added seats — even though Southwest, American and United have canceled thousands of flights while their Boeing 737 Max jets remain grounded.

The airline trade group said traffic on U.S. carriers was up 4.4% in the first half of this year, outstripping the increase in seats, so planes were more crowded than they were last year.

Combined with an increase in revenue per mile of nearly 1%, the pretax profit of U.S. airlines was 9.3% in the first half, up from 7.2% a year earlier, the group said.

Transportation Department figures show that fares have been at or near record lows, after adjusting for inflation.

The average domestic fare in 2018 was $352, the lowest since the department started keeping track in 1995, after considering inflation.

The average in this year’s first quarter was up $1 from early 2018, however. The numbers don’t include extra fees, which make up a growing percentage of airline revenue. — The Associated Press