Total August air demand, as measured in revenue passenger kilometers, decreased 0.8 percent year over year, as demand declines in the Middle East deepened, according to the latest report from the International Air Transport Association. Excluding the Middle East, demand grew by 0.6 percent.
Global air demand had recovered slightly in July after declining each month since March as the conflict in the Middle East dampened demand.
August total capacity, as measured in available seat kilometers, increased 0.3 percent year over year. The global load factor was 85.1 percent, down 0.9 percentage points versus August 2025.
International demand in August fell 0.9 percent year over year. Excluding the Middle East, it grew by 1.3 percent, according to IATA. Capacity was flat compared with a year prior, while load factor was 85 percent, down 0.8 percentage points.
August domestic demand fell 0.5 percent year over year. Domestic capacity increased 0.7 percent, and load factor was 85.3 percent, down 1.1 percentage points for the period.
"With some important exceptions, such as domestic China, global connectivity was generally weaker in August," IATA SVP of sustainability and chief economist Marie Owens Thomsen said in a statement. "The coming months will reveal whether travelers, whose purchasing power has been reduced by higher energy prices, are adjusting their travel budgets and might be discouraged from traveling to the prevailing geopolitical instability. In the meantime, forward schedules for October are showing cautious optimism with 2 percent growth [year over year] in available seats."
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For the total market, Middle East August traffic declined 14.6 percent year over year, with capacity down 9.3 percent. North America was the only other region also to report declines in demand and supply, with traffic down 2.2 percent and capacity down 1 percent compared with August 2025. Europe led in load factor at 87.5 percent despite a year-over-year decline of 0.6 percentage points.
August international demand and capacity declined not only in the Middle East but also in Asia-Pacific and North America. Africa reported demand growth of 6.7 percent year over year, as did Latin America and the Caribbean. Africa had capacity growth of 8.3 percent, while Latin America and the Caribbean capacity grew 6.4 percent. European international demand increased 2.1 percent, while capacity was up 2.8 percent. North America and Europe led in load factor with each reporting 86.8 percent.
On the domestic front, August demand and capacity each declined year over year in the U.S., Japan and India. China had the strongest domestic demand increase at 5.8 percent year over year, with capacity up 6.5 percent. Brazil followed with August domestic demand up 4.3 percent and capacity up 8 percent. Though domestic demand and capacity declined for Japan, it led in load factor at 90 percent, which was up 0.1 percentage points compared with August 2025.
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