SINGAPORE, 11 September 2023: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that the post-Covid-19 recovery momentum continued in July for passenger markets.
Total traffic in July 2023 (revenue passenger-km or RPKs) rose 26.2% compared to July 2022. Globally, traffic is now at 95.6% of pre-Covid levels.
Domestic traffic for July rose 21.5% versus July 2022 and was 8.3% above the July 2019 results. July RPKs are the highest ever recorded, strongly supported by surging demand in the Chinese domestic market.
International traffic climbed 29.6% compared to the same month a year ago, with all markets showing robust growth. International RPKs reached 88.7% of July 2019 levels. The industry’s passenger load factor (PLF) reached 85.7%, the highest monthly international PLF ever recorded.
“Planes were full during July as people continued to travel in greater numbers. Importantly, forward ticket sales indicate that traveller confidence remains high. And there is every reason to be optimistic about the continuing recovery,” said IATA’s director general Willie Walsh.
International Passenger Markets
Asia-Pacific airlines saw a 105.8% increase in July 2023 traffic compared to July 2022, continuing to lead the regions. Capacity climbed 96.2%, and the load factor increased by 3.9 percentage points to 84.5%.
European carriers’ July traffic rose 13.8% versus July 2022. Capacity increased 13.6%, and the load factor edged up 0.1 percentage points to 87.0%.
Middle Eastern airlines posted a 22.6% increase in July traffic compared to a year ago. Capacity rose 22.1%, and load factor climbed 0.3 percentage points to 82.6%.
North American carriers had a 17.7% traffic rise in July 2023 versus 2022. Capacity increased by 17.2%, and load factor improved by 0.3 percentage points to 90.3%, the highest among the regions for a second consecutive month.
Latin American airlines’ traffic rose 25.3% compared to the same month in 2022. July capacity climbed 21.2%, and the load factor rose 2.9 percentage points to 89.1%.
African airlines saw a 25.6% traffic increase in July 2023 versus a year ago, the region’s second-highest percentage gain. July capacity was up 27.4%, and the load factor fell one percentage point to 73.9%, the lowest among the regions. For a second month, Africa was the only region to see capacity growth outrun traffic demand.
