Regional Airline Employment Jumps 5.9 Percent

Regional carrier full-time equivalent employees (FTEs) were up 5.9 percent in February 2007 compared to February 2006, the largest increase in FTEs from the previous year since July 2005, according to statistics, recently released by the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics . SkyWest, ExpressJet, Comair, Atlantic Southeast, Horizon, Mesa, Pinnacle Shuttle America, Republic and GoJet all added FTEs from February 2006 to February 2007 along with Continental and Alaska. American Airlines employed the most FTEs in February among the network carriers, Southwest Airlines employed the most among low-cost carriers, and American Eagle Airlines employed the most among regional carriers.