Fueled by strong international flight demand, low oil prices
and an extra leap-year day, global passenger air traffic in February increased
8.6 percent year over year, as measured in revenue passenger kilometers,
according to the International Air Transport Association.
February traffic on international routes increased 9.1
percent year over year, led by a 12.7 percent increase in Africa and an 11.6
percent increase in the Middle East, according to IATA. North American
international revenue passenger kilometers increased 3.6 percent, the lowest
increase among global regions. European international demand increased 7.7
percent.
February domestic RPKs increased 7.9 percent year over year
and 8.9 percent in the United States.
Global capacity, as measured in available seat kilometers,
increased 9.9 percent year over year. Load factors, however, dropped by
0.6 percentage points, the first such year-over-year decline since
mid-2015.
"It is unclear whether this signals the start of a
generalized downward trend in load factor, but it bears watching," IATA director
general and CEO Tony Tyler said in a statement.