Strong passenger demand continues in June
Global air travel was back on track in June, reaching 70.8 per cent of pre-Covid-19 levels, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced.
It said the development was driven by strong passenger demand despite the challenging times for the aviation industry.
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The IATA, therefore, called for flexibility to ensure that the increasing passenger demand can be met during a time of great disruption at airports worldwide, which are suffering from staff shortages.
The data
Data released by the IATA last week showed total traffic in June was up 76.2 per cent compared to June 2021, driven by the ongoing strong recovery in international traffic.
Domestic traffic for June 2022 was up 5.2 per cent compared to the same month a year ago.
The IATA attributed the positive trend to improvements in most markets combined with fewer Covid-related restrictions in the Chinese domestic market.
In total, domestic traffic in June was at 81.4 per cent of June 2019 levels.
International traffic, meanwhile, increased by 229.5 per cent over June 2021 again due to fewer travel restrictions in most parts of the Asia-Pacific region. June 2022 international traffic reached 65.0 per cent of June 2019 levels.
In Europe, June traffic increased by 234.4 per cent compared to the same month in 2021. Capacity rose by 134.5 per cent and load factor by 25.8 percentage points to 86.3 per cent. International traffic within Europe is now above pre-pandemic levels in seasonally adjusted terms, the IATA said.
Strong demand
The Director General of IATA, Willie Walsh, said demand for air travel remained strong.
He said after two years of lockdowns and border restrictions, people were taking advantage of the freedom to travel wherever they could.
He said airlines and their passengers at some hub airports were being confronted with a number of issues.
“Flexibility is still essential in support of a successful recovery. By capping passenger numbers, airports are preventing airlines from benefiting from the strong demand,” he said.
A glance at other markets: Middle Eastern airline traffic rose by 246.5 per cent in June over June 2021 and capacity by 102.4 per cent.
North American carriers marked a 168.9 per cent increase in traffic and capacity rose by 95.0 per cent.
June traffic for Latin American airlines rose by 136.6 per cent and capacity by 107.4 per cent.
China’s domestic traffic fell by 45.0 per cent year-on-year in June while Japan’s was up by 146.4 per cent.
The IATA represents some 290 airlines that comprise 83 per cent of global air traffic.