Global passenger demand was “solid but not exceptional” in April, according to the latest results from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Demand - measured in revenue passenger kilometres - rose by 4.3 percent year-on-year, while capacity (ASKs) increased by 3.6 percent.
IATA said comparisons between the two months are distorted owing to the timing of the Easter holiday, which occurred on 1 April in 2018 but fell much later in the month in 2019.
However, load factor climbed 0.6 percentage point to 82.8 in April 2019, which was a record for the month of April, surpassing last year’s record of 82.2 percent. Regionally, Africa, Europe and Latin America posted record load factors.
“We experienced solid but not exceptional rising demand for air connectivity in April,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s director general and chief executive.
“This partly is owing to the timing of Easter, but also reflects the slowing global economy. Driven by tariffs and trade disputes, global trade is falling, and as a result, we are not seeing traffic growing at the same levels as a year ago.
“However, airlines are doing a very good job of managing aircraft utilisation, leading to record load factors.”
April’s international passenger demand rose 5.1 percent compared to April 2018. All regions recorded year-over-year traffic increases, led by airlines in Europe. Total capacity climbed 3.8 percent, and load factor climbed 1.1 percentage points to 82.5 percent.
Demand for domestic travel climbed 2.8 percent in April compared to April 2018, down from 4.1 percent growth in March year-over-year. IATA said a slowdown in China and India contributed to the softening trend.
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