Record Number of Passengers for Airlines in ’85

A record 380 million people flew on U.S. scheduled airline flights in 1985, almost double the number of passengers in 1975, the Air Transport Association said Wednesday.

It was an 11 percent increase over the 343 million people who flew on domestic and overseas American scheduled airlines in 1984. In 1975, 205 million people were passengers on scheduled U.S. airline flights.

Association spokesman Daniel Henkin said there was no relation between the increased number of passengers and the worldwide record number of aviation fatalities last year, when nearly 2,000 people died in accidents.

“There were more people on planes, but there is just no relation,” he said.

There were four fatal accidents involving scheduled American passenger and cargo planes in 1985, killing 199 people.

The ATA expects travel on U.S. scheduled airlines to exceed 400 million passengers in 1986.