Global air travel reaches 99.1% of pre-virus level in November

By Tuba Ongun

ANKARA (AA) – World air traffic in November 2023 reached 99.1% of its pre-coronavirus level, a sectoral group data revealed on Wednesday.

Total air traffic – measured in revenue passenger kilometers, or RPKs – grew 29.7% at an annualized pace in November, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

"We are moving ever closer to surpassing the 2019 peak year for air travel. Economic headwinds are not deterring people from taking to the skies," said Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general.

Thanks to a strong recovery in China and US' solid thanksgiving holiday demand, domestic traffic for November increased 34.8% from a year earlier.

November 2023 domestic traffic in total was 6.7% above the November 2019 level, said the IATA statement.

International traffic rose 26.4% from the previous year, with RPKs reaching 94.5% of November 2019 levels.

All markets recorded improvement in the month with the Asia-Pacific region reporting the strongest year-over-year results.

Separate IATA data on Tuesday showed that global demand for air cargo, measured in cargo ton-kilometers, gained 8.3% compared to November 2022.

Capacity – measured in available cargo ton-kilometers – jumped 13.7% compared to the prior year in November 2023.