Global airline capacity this week is up by nearly 16 percent, or about 5.7 million seats, compared with last week, with capacity up across all major regional markets except Southeast Asia and Lower South America, according to OAG.
About 60 airlines are resuming service this week, including Turkish Airlines and Transavia, and total global capacity this week stands at 36.7 million, about a third of the level of what it was this time last year, OAG reported. In addition, "there are indications of some growth in search and booking activity in both the Chinese domestic market and indeed Europe, and particularly Italy," according to OAG analyst John Grant.
Capacity in Northeast Asia is up 8.1 percent, and domestic capacity in the region has reached 80 percent of its pre-Covid-19 levels, though international capacity in the region still is only 13 percent of what it was before the pandemic. Capacity in Central America and the Middle East, thanks in part to the reopening of Saudi Arabia, this week more than doubled week over week, OAG indicated.
Grant said that, despite the growth this week, cancellations and capacity adjustments will remain the norm.
"With uncertainty remaining and traveler confidence yet to be restored, there are a lot of factors outside the airlines control that will continue to affect demand and ultimately capacity," he said. "In the United Kingdom some 7.8 million seats have been removed by airlines in the last two weeks through to the end of July. As each week passes, we expect to see further adjustments in all markets."