International passenger uplift hit 12.3 per cent in June 2024 compared to last year. With passenger demand up across all regions after exceeding pre-pandemic figures for the first time earlier this year, IATA figures forecast a positive future for air travel.
Load factor for international operations also improved to an average of 85 per cent despite overall air capacity lagging behind global growth.
The latest International Air Transport Association (IATA) figures point to the importance of capacity, efficiency and sustainability when operating with high load factors.
IATA Director General Willie Walsh said the high average load factor, which affects airlines’ seat capacity and revenue, was both good and challenging.
“It makes it even more important for all the stakeholders to operate with equal levels of efficiency to minimise delays and get travellers to their destinations on schedule,” he said.
Summer travel season sees demand spike
Demand grew across all regions as the peak Northern Hemisphere summer travel season began in June.
Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), was up 9.1 per cent compared to June 2023 while total capacity in available seat kilometres (ASK) was up 8.5 per cent year-on-year.
Asia-Pacific airlines led the global recovery as international passenger growth remained strong with a 22.6 per cent year-on-year increase in demand.
Capacity increased 22.9 per cent year-on-year and the load factor improved to 83 per cent.
These robust results are attributed to pent-up travel demand in the region and strong economic performance boosting spending on travel. A recent report showed the average Australian travel budget rose 35 per cent year-on-year in 2024.
However, year-on-year domestic demand went backwards in Australia (-1%) and Japan (0.2%) in terms of RPK compared to other regions.
Globally, year-on-year June domestic ticket sales for July and August travel dipped -0.9 per cent, indicating a gradual moderation in demand back to pre-pandemic growth rates.
Read the full IATA report here.
