The latest data released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) unveils key insights into global passenger demand for February 2024:
Total Demand: Revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs) surged by 21.5% compared to February 2023, while available seat kilometres (ASK) increased by 18.7% year-on-year. The load factor for February reached 80.6%, marking a 1.9 percentage points increase from the same period in 2023.
International Demand: International passenger demand experienced a substantial 26.3% growth compared to February 2023, with capacity up by 25.5% year-on-year. The load factor for international flights improved to 79.3%, a 0.5 percentage point increase from the previous year.
Domestic Demand: Domestic passenger demand also witnessed significant growth, rising by 15.0% compared to the same month in 2023. Capacity increased by 9.4% year-on-year, resulting in a load factor of 82.6%, up by 4.0 percentage points from February 2023.
It’s noteworthy that February 2024 was a leap year, featuring one additional day compared to 2023, which slightly inflated both demand and capacity growth figures.
Regional Performance:
Asia-Pacific: Airlines in this region experienced a remarkable 53.2% increase in demand year-on-year, with capacity up by 52.1%. The load factor reached 84.9%, the highest among all regions, marking a 0.6 percentage point increase from February 2023.
Europe: Carriers in Europe observed a 15.9% increase in demand, accompanied by a 16.0% growth in capacity. The load factor remained flat at 74.7% compared to February 2023.
Middle East: Airlines in the Middle East recorded a 19.7% increase in demand, with capacity rising by 19.1% year-on-year. The load factor improved to 80.8%, up by 0.4 percentage points from February 2023.
North America: Passenger demand for North American carriers grew by 16.0% year-on-year, while capacity increased by 17.6%. However, the load factor declined to 77.7%, a 1.1 percentage points decrease compared to February 2023.
Latin America: Airlines in Latin America experienced a robust 21.0% increase in demand, with capacity climbing by 18.6% year-on-year. The load factor rose to 84.2%, up by 1.7 percentage points compared to February 2023.
Africa: African carriers saw a significant 20.7% increase in demand, coupled with a 22.1% rise in capacity. However, the load factor dipped to 74.0%, down by 0.8 percentage points from February 2023.
