Global air travel demand increased 9.6 percent year over
year in January, the highest monthly rate of increase in more than five years,
according to the International Air Transport Association.
While the timing of the Chinese New Year, which was in
January this year and February last year, accounted for some of the growth, the
industry also is seeing an "upturn in the global economic cycle and a
return to a more normal environment after the terrorism and political shock
events seen in early 2016," according to IATA director general and CEO
Alexandre de Juniac. Global air capacity increased 8 percent year over year in
January, and load factor rose 1.2 percentage points to 80.2 percent.
International air traffic increased in all regions, most
strongly in the Middle East and the Asia/Pacific region. International demand
growth was the slowest for North American airlines, in part because of weaker
demand on routes between the U.S. and the U.K.
On
domestic routes, traffic rose in all major markets except Brazil. China, India
and Russia all had double-digit-percentage increases in traffic in January.