IATA Says February Global Air Traffic was at 84.9% of February 2019 Levels
Domestic volume was at 97.2% of same month in 2019 >>
by: Harvey Chipkin
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced continued strong growth in air travel demand, based on February 2023 traffic results. Total traffic in February (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) rose 55.5% compared with February 2022. Globally, traffic is now at 84.9% of February 2019 levels.
Domestic traffic for February rose 25.2% compared with the year-ago period. Total February 2023 domestic traffic was at 97.2% of the February 2019 level.
International traffic climbed 89.7% versus February 2022 with all markets recording strong growth, led once again by carriers in the Asia-Pacific region. International RPKs reached 77.5% of February 2019 levels.
North American carriers’ traffic climbed 67.4% in February 2023 versus the 2022 period. Capacity increased 39.5%, and load factor rose 12.8 percentage points to 76.6%.
Willie Walsh, director general, of IATA,, said that despite the uncertain economic signals, demand for air travel continues to be strong across the globe and particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. The industry is now just about 15% below 2019 levels of demand, and that gap is narrowing each month, he said.
We use cookies to offer you a better browsing experience, analyze traffic and personalize content. Read how we use and protect your data in our privacy policy. Do you accept cookies?