load factor

noun

: the percentage of available seats paid for and occupied in an aircraft

Examples of load factor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web However, airline load factors, a measure of how full aircraft fly, had rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. Marisa Garcia, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024 These include dividing the square footage by the occupant load factor listed in chapter 10 of the city’s building code. Jill Terreri Ramos, New York Times, 10 Feb. 2024 With industry load factors at about 85%, there aren’t enough seats to make up for the loss of business travelers. Ben Baldanza, Forbes, 18 Apr. 2023 Total increases depend on rate class, load factors and usage. Aaron Gettinger, arkansasonline.com, 5 Dec. 2023 Although the company reported a 14% rise in available seat miles, the load factor was down 190 bps and yield declined 10%, weighing on the overall top-line growth. Trefis Team, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023 The load factor, which measures the number of seats sold onboard each flight, reached 81.8%. Marisa Garcia, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023 At the same time load factor—a measure of flight occupancy—has increased to nearly 93% in the six months, pointing to strong travel demand. Byprarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 9 Nov. 2023 Last April, passenger load factor — the ratio of passengers to seats available — was 84%, a jump from 74% in 2000, according to the Transportation Department. Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN, 16 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'load factor.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1943, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of load factor was in 1943

Dictionary Entries Near load factor

Cite this Entry

“Load factor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/load%20factor. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.

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