1 January 2010
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has reported that the level of international air travel is now 4% above the pre-recession peak of early 2008 according to latest figures. Its November 2010 traffic figures show an 8.2% year on year growth in passenger numbers. This is a slight fall on the level of growth seen in October 2010 (10%). IATA CEO, Giovanni Bisignani, has stated that the industry is shifting gears in the recovery cycle and that growth is slowing towards normal historical levels in the 5%-6% range.
Regional performance:
- African carriers were the only airlines to show an increase in growth rates from October 2010 (12.6%) to November 2010 (16.4%).
- European carriers saw a growth in traffic of 7.3%, while passenger numbers for North American carriers grew by 9.5%, Asia Pacific carriers by 5.8% and Middle East carriers by 16.7%.
- Latin American airlines, which have been some of the strongest performing over the past year, showed no growth in passenger numbers.
IATA’s figures confirm that the aviation industry is on track to deliver a profit of £9.7 billion ($15.1 billion) this year, despite being one of the worst hit sectors during the recession – in 2009 airlines globally lost £6.3 billion ($9.9 billion).
For 2011, IATA predicts a reduced profit of £6 billion ($9.1 billion) for the airlines. Mr Bisignani stated that it is a 1.5% margin, and that more hard work will be needed in 2011 to achieve sustainable levels of profitability.