The International Air Transport Association has reported a 8% increase in global passenger demand for July 2024, compared to the same period last year. This is a record for the aviation industry. Demand, measured by revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), coincided with a 7.4 percent increase in capacity, measured by available seat kilometers.
Despite significant challenges, such as a major IT outage on the 19th of July, the global load factor achieved 86.0 percent, an increase of 0.5 percentage points compared to July 20,23.
Demand for international travel grew by a solid 10.1% year-on-year. Capacity grew by 10.5%. However, the load factor for international flights decreased by 0.3 points to 85.9 percent.
Asia-Pacific Airlines led the surge in demand with a 19.1% growth, driven by a recovery of regional markets. They also increased capacity by 20.3%. European carriers also performed well with an 8.3 percent increase in demand and an 87.5 percent load factor.
On the domestic side, passenger demand increased by 4.8 percent, while capacity grew by 2.8 percent year-over-year. The domestic load-factor improved to 86.1%. This is a 1.7 point increase compared to July 2023. Brazil led the domestic market growth while Japan and Australia recovered strongly from the previous months’ downturns.
Asia-Pacific : The region saw an increase in total RPKs of 12.0%, with a loading factor of 83.4%. Asia-Middle East was one of the few routes to surpass pre pandemic levels. Europe: Demand grew by 7.2% with a load-factor of 88.2%. This is the highest of all regions.
North America: This region reported a 4.9% increase in demand. The highest load factor worldwide was 88.9%.
Latin America: Passenger Demand grew by 13.4%. However, the load factor dropped to 87.5 % due to a 15.7% capacity increase. Middle East: The demand rose by 5.8% with a load-factor of 84.1%. Africa: African Airlines experienced a 7.4 percent increase in demand. The load factor was 74.3 percent.
Malaysia Aviation Group, parent company of Malaysia Airlines, announced that it would reduce its network capacity by 20% due to a shortage of planes, parts, and labour. This reduction affects domestic flights and flights in Southeast Asia, North Asia and Australia, among other regions. The group wants to ensure that schedules are credible and that customers have a great experience.
Willie Walsh is the Director General of IATA. He praised the continued recovery, and the record-breaking demand, despite the operational difficulties. Walsh said that July was another good month, which highlighted the important role aviation plays in connecting people to each other and driving economic activity. He also stressed the need for manufacturers to address persistent supply-chain issues that are hampering the industry’s capacity to meet growing demands.
As the northern summer season winds up, the aviation sector transitions from leisure to business travel. Air travel demand is expected to remain strong. The industry continues to urge efforts to ensure that air transportation remains accessible and affordable while it navigates these obstacles.
