Press Releases

The pandemic will affect the airline business for years to come, but travel will return because it is an essential element of being human. There are no “opportunities” during this time of trial but we can learn from past economic challenges and global events that have tested the travel industry. This report anticipates the changes that will occur as consumers return to airlines, hotels, and car hire companies.

Jay Sorensen’s letter to the global airline community:  for those at the ticket counter, at the gate, on the plane, on the ramp, in the hangar, and at corporate headquarters.

The birthplace of airline a la carte revenue—Europe—continues to lead the globe in annual growth for this key sales component. And the world’s fastest-growing air travel market, Asia, is not far behind.  IdeaWorksCompany, the foremost consultancy on airline ancillary revenues, and CarTrawler, the leading technology platform providing end to end transport solutions for online businesses, recently estimated airline a la carte revenue at $75.6 billion worldwide for 2019.  The CarTrawler Global Statistics of a la Carte Revenue adds regional details and 2015 comparisons to the figures from the earlier November 2019 release.

Airline Ancillary Revenue Projected to Leap to $109.5 Billion Worldwide in 2019
IdeaWorksCompany, the foremost consultant on ancillary revenue, and CarTrawler, the leading provider of online car rental distribution systems, project airline ancillary revenue will reach $109.5 billion worldwide in 2019, compared to $92.9 billion in 2018. The CarTrawler Worldwide Estimate of Ancillary Revenue represents an almost fivefold increase from the 2010 figure of $22.6 billion, which was the first annual ancillary revenue estimate.
Click here for CarTrawler Ancillary Revenue Estimate 2019 Graphic (JPG file)

European Aviation Conference, Jay Sorensen Keynote Presentation
Jay Sorensen was the keynote presenter for the 2019 European Aviation Conference which was held November 7/8, 2019 in Vienna at the University of Vienna, School of Law.  Since 2012, the European Aviation Conference (EAC) has offered a unique meeting place for industry stakeholders, researchers and government officials from across Europe and around the world to discuss timely, policy-relevant issues in aviation with the goal of the seeking insights from best practices and practical solutions to challenges facing the aviation industry.  Click below to also view the presentation for the panel discussion which followed the keynote:
European Aviation Conference, Jay Sorensen Panel Slides

Becoming the “Amazon of Travel” Should Not Be a Goal for Airlines
CarTrawler-sponsored analysis shows airlines how to stop treating air travel as a commodity and dominate the travel planning process.  It’s hard to believe we are nearing the 24th anniversary of airline websites – Alaska Airlines sold the first air travel ticket online in December 1995. Fast forward to today, airline websites still promote two core functions: transactions and information retrieval. At present, airline websites are little more than cash registers surrounded by shelves of merchandise. This report encourages airlines to move from a transaction focus to become robust retailers of travel.

Top Ten Airlines Generated $35.2 Billion from Ancillary Revenue in 2018
Every year IdeaWorksCompany searches for disclosures of financial results which qualify as ancillary revenue for airlines all over the globe. Annual reports, investor presentations, financial press releases, and quotes attributed to senior executives all qualify as sources in the data collection process.  These results are contained in the new report, 2018 Top 10 Airline Ancillary Revenue Rankings.

British Airways Greatly Boosts Reward Seat Availability, and Entire Industry Shows Dramatic Improvement
The 10th annual Reward Seat Availability Survey finds Southwest, JetBlue, Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines atop the rankings.  The IdeaWorksCompany Reward Seat Availability Survey answers the question, “How easy is redemption for the most popular basic reward type offered by the world’s top airlines?” This year’s survey assesses 20 top airlines, with Etihad, Qatar, and Singapore as newcomers for 2019.  The net result is better reward seat availability for 2019 compared to 2018.  Of the frequent flyer programs surveyed this year, 13 provided better overall reward availability for 2019, with only three programs showing decreased availability.

Click here for 2019 Worldwide Reward Survey FAQs.

IKEA Teaches Everything You Need to Know About Airline Retail
IKEA is not an airline, but it is one of the world’s master retailers. The company’s relationship with customers doesn’t depend on pushing transactions. Instead the company seeks to offer “products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them.” It has become a global success because it first seeks to meet customer needs. This distinctive style also defines retail-savvy ways to boost revenue for airlines, which are described in a 15-page report sponsored by CarTrawler.

Global Baggage Fee Revenue Jumps to $28.1 Billion
CarTrawler Global Estimate of Baggage Fee Revenue reveals 110% increase from 2014 estimate of $13.4 billion.  IdeaWorksCompany, the foremost consultancy on airline ancillary revenues, and CarTrawler, the leading technology platform providing transport solutions for online businesses, recently estimated ancillary revenue at $92.9 billion worldwide for 2018. This CarTrawler Global Estimate of Baggage Fee Revenue identifies baggage as a $28.1 billion component and provides a worldwide summary of baggage fee policies for 20 top airlines.