IATA Reported Record High Global Passenger Demand in 2024
The International Air Transport Association, in a recent report, stated that the global passenger demand has reached record high levels and has even surpassed pre-Covid levels of 2019.
The IATA measured the full-year traffic in Revenue Passengers Kilometers (RPK), which showed that passenger trends climbed 10.4% compared to 2023 and were 3.8% higher if compared to 2019.
There was an 8.7% year-on-year increase in capacity when measured in available seat kilometers (ASK). A jump of 13.6% was seen in international traffic, with an increase in capacity of 12.8%. Domestic traffic was also not behind, recording a growth of 5.7% year-on-year with capacity increasing by 2.3%.
The US domestic market showed the most growth, holding about 14.4% share of the total RPKs, with its load factor being 84.1%. Japan remained the only major market where the load factor did not breach the 80% barrier. While the ASK in the market still decreased by 0.3% year-on-year, the demand jumped by 3.2%.
China, being the second-largest domestic market, saw a significant increase in RPKs. It also saw demand rise by 12.3%, although capacity showed a growth of only 3.1%. The load factor reached 83.2% after showing a good growth of 6.8%.
Looking at the numbers and stats across the board, it is evident that people are eager to travel by air as the aviation industry records new levels of demand, load factor, and growth. The year saw an average of 83.5% of all seats filled, which was a new high.
The year 2025 is expected to record a moderate 8% growth rate in the aviation industry, matching historical averages over the years. This continued growth will also bring new challenges into focus as demand surges.
Another major focus of the aviation industry is to switch to environmentally friendly methods of aviation and contribute towards the goal of net zero emissions by 2050. Despite the heavy investment by airlines in Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), only 0.5% of fuel consumption is met by SAF.
Brookfield Aviation International is pleased with the growth statistics across the aviation industry. Airlines will have to continue to step up their game and expand to meet the rising demand. Brookfield has been a long-trusted partner for airlines to find the best pilots, engineers, and other aviation personnel.
