第一篇：
A century after the first commercial flight took off, around $746 billion is expected to be spent this year on
global air travel, a record 3.3 billion passenger journeys will be taken and 1,400 new aircraft help will whisk
them across the skies.
But among these impressive figures there is a much smaller one that airlines are really taking note of: $5.42.
That’s the average profit made by airlines for each passenger they carry. “With a net profit margin of just 2.4%,
airlines only retain $5.42 per passenger carried,” said Tony Tyler CEO of International Air Transport Association
(IATA) at the group’s 70th AGM in Doha, Qatar. “There is a mismatch between the value that the industry
contributes to economies and the rewards that it generates.”
For others at the sharp end of the industry, the quest for profits is an ongoing battle. “We’re the wrong part
of the food chain,” says JetBlue Airways CEO David Barger. “Airports and financiers, you look at the profit
margins of them compared to airlines. But we recognize we’re the wrong part and you have to be innovative.”
Pearce suggests that if fuel prices -- one of the biggest costs to airlines -- were to fall, then because of the keenly
competitive nature of the industry it would be the customer that would be the beneficiary. Even with high fuel
prices IATA forecasts that on average fares this year will fall by around 3.5%. The profits the industry has made
are mainly because of cost-cutting in the industry through improved efficiency and consolidation, plus the way
that airlines package their products, most notably through giving passengers more choice in what kind of options
they want with a flight. That also gives airlines other ways to make a few dollars with ancillaries like baggage
charges or seat preferences. Yet the lament from IATA remains that airlines and those in the commercial aviation
industry are still hampered by high taxation and low profitability. 【題組】3. What is NOT mentioned about the airline industry?
(A) The airline business is greatly influenced by economic downturn.
(B) The number of airline passengers will reach more than 3 billion.
(C) If fuel prices were to drop, the customers would be the beneficiary.
(D) The profit margins of airlines are relatively low if compared to those of airports
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