Global air passenger demand rose by 3.3 per cent in March – as measured by revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) – compared with the same month in 2024, according to the latest analysis from airlines association IATA.
But IATA said that total capacity (available seat kilometres) “outpaced the demand expansion” at 5.3 per cent in March, leading to a 1.6 percentage point year-on-year fall in the month’s load factor to 80.7 per cent.
On a regional basis, airline demand in Europe rose by 4.4 per cent year-on-year in March while capacity was up by 6.4 per cent, which reduced overall load factor 1.5 points to 79.2 per cent.
But the North American market saw a 1.1 per cent fall in RPKs in March, despite capacity rising by 3.5 per cent. Although the region’s load factor remained above the global average at 81.4 per cent.
“There remains a lot of speculation around the potential impacts of tariffs and other economic headwinds on travel,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general.
“While the small decline in demand in North America needs to be watched carefully, March numbers continued to show a global pattern of growth for air travel.
“That means the challenges associated with accommodating more people who need to travel – specifically alleviating supply chain problems and ensuring sufficient airport and air traffic management capacity – remain urgent.”
Source : BTN Europe
