International traffic rose by 10.8 pc: IATA
Airline trade association International Air Transport Association (IATA) reported that global air passenger demand grew by 8 pc in April this year compared to the same month last year. According to its findings, capacity increased by 6.5 pc, and the global load factor reached 83.6 pc, up 1 percentage point from April 2024.
In a press statement, IATA says that international traffic rose by 10.8 pc, with a capacity rise of 8.5 pc. The load factor climbed to 84.1 pc, the highest ever recorded for April. Domestic demand increased by 3.3 pc with a 3.1 pc increase in capacity and a marginal 0.1 percentage point improvement in load factor to 82.7 pc.
It adds that Africa saw the highest year-on-year growth in total traffic, increasing by 14.2 pc with a 10.3 pc rise in capacity. The load factor was 76.3 pc, which was up by 2.6 percent. Additionally, Asia-Pacific traffic rose by 10.6 pc while capacity increased by 7.9 pc. The load factor stood at 84.4 pc, an improvement of 2 pc.
According to the statement, the airline association reports that European airlines recorded traffic growth of 8.3 pc, with capacity increased by 6.6 pc, and the load factor stood at 85.1 pc, an increase of 1.3 pc. Latin American traffic grew by 10.9 pc, with capacity rising 10.1 pc, and the load factor reaching 82.3 pc, an increase of 0.6 percentage points. The Middle East saw demand rise by 11.3 pc, capacity by 6.7 pc, and the load factor climb to 82.9 pc, up 3.4 percentage points. Meanwhile, North American traffic increased by 1.6 pc annually with capacity up by 3.2 pc, but the load factor declined by 1.3 percentage points to 81.9 pc.
Further, IATA reports that international Revenue Passenger Kilometres (RPK) growth rose by 10.8 pc, which was led by Asia-Pacific airlines with a 14.4 pc increase in demand. Latin America followed at 13.9 pc, the Middle East at 11.2 pc, and Europe at 9.4 pc. After two months of decline, Africa resumed growth at 13.6 pc. North America saw 5.4 pc growth, although the growth of premium class travel dropped by 26 pc.
As per statement, the load factors stood at 85.3 pc for Asia-Pacific carriers, 84.5 pc for European carriers, 83.1 pc for the Middle East, 83.4 pc for North America, 83.2 pc for Latin America, and 76.3 pc for Africa.
According to IATA, domestic RPK witnessed an increase of 3.3 pc globally, with Brazil and India leading growth through double-digit rises. However, the US domestic traffic declined by 0.5 pc for the third consecutive month.
The statement says that India’s domestic traffic grew by 10 pc, with its capacity expanding by 11.3 pc, thus causing the load factor to fall to 85.7 pc, which is considered highest among major domestic markets. Brazil witnessed a 13.5 pc increase in domestic demand, with its capacity up by 7.7 pc, resulting in a 4.2 pc increase, with load factor standing to 81.1 pc.
IATA says that China posted 7 pc growth in RPK, Japan 7.3 pc, and Australia 2.4 pc. Australia’s capacity dropped by 2.2 pc, but its load factor improved by 3.7 percentage points to 81.5 pc. In the US, domestic capacity rose 3.4 pc, while load factor fell by 3.1 pc points to 80.6 pc.
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