African, Global Air Passenger Demand Reaches Record High in 2024

Africa has achieved a record traffic year in 2024, with African airlines’ annual traffic rising 13.2% in 2024 versus the prior year, The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced. IATA said that Africa’s full year 2024 capacity was up 9.5% and load factor climbed 2.5 percentage points to 74.5%, the lowest among regions, but a record high for Africa.

On the global level, IATA said that total full-year traffic in 2024, measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs, rose 10.4% compared to 2023. This was 3.8% above pre-pandemic (2019) levels. Total capacity, measured in available seat kilometers (ASK), was up 8.7% in 2024. The overall load factor reached 83.5%, a record for full-year traffic, IATA stated.

Also, international full-year traffic in 2024 increased 13.6% compared to 2023, and capacity rose 12.8%, while domestic full-year traffic for 2024 rose 5.7% compared to the prior year, while capacity expanded by 2.5%. IATA said that December 2024 was a strong finish to the year with overall demand rising 8.6% year-on-year, and capacity grew by 5.6%. International demand rose by 10.6% and domestic demand by 5.5%. The December load factor reached 84%, a record for the month, IATA revealed.

“2024 made it absolutely clear that people want to travel. With 10.4% demand growth, travel reached record numbers domestically and internationally. Airlines met that strong demand with record efficiency. On average, 83.5% of all seats on offer were filled—a new record high, partially attributable to the supply chain constraints that limited capacity growth. Aviation growth reverberates across societies and economies at all levels through jobs, market development, trade, innovation, exploration, and much more,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.

“Looking to 2025, there is every indication that demand for travel will continue to grow, albeit at a moderated pace of 8.0% that is more aligned with historical averages. The desire to partake in the freedom that flying makes possible brings some challenges into sharp focus.”

Noting that the industry would continue to improve safety, he described the tragic accident in Washington recently as a reminder that safety needs industry’s continuous efforts, as he condoled with all those affected by the accident. He also underlined airlines’ firm commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. While airlines invested record amounts in purchases of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in 2024, Walsh emphasized that less than 0.5% of fuel needs were met with SAF, stating that “SAF is in short supply and costs must come down.”

He noted that “Governments could fortify their national energy security and unblock this problem by prioritizing renewable fuel production from which SAF is derived. In addition to securing energy supplies and increasing the SAF supply, diverting a fraction of the subsidies given for fossil fuel extraction to support renewable energy capacity would also boost prosperity through economic expansion and job creation,” said Walsh.

Air Passenger Market in Detail – 2024

1) % of industry RPKs in 2024    2) Year-on-year change in load factor    3) Load Factor Level

International Passenger Markets

IATA disclosed that full-year international traffic surpassed the previous 2019 high by 0.5% in 2024, with growth in all regions. Capacity was 0.9% lower than 2019. The load factor improved by 0.5 percentage points, finishing on 83.2%, a record high.

For the month of December, international demand grew by 10.6%, capacity increased 7.7% and the load factor improved by 2.2 percentage points, as compared to December 2023, to 83.9%.

Asia-Pacific airlines posted a 26.0% rise in full year international 2024 traffic compared to 2023, maintaining the strongest year-over-year rate among the regions. Capacity rose 24.7% and the load factor climbed 0.8 percentage points to 83.8%. IATA explained that despite this strong growth, opportunities for further growth remain high, as international RPKs remain 8.7% below 2019 levels. December 2024 traffic rose 17.1% compared to December 2023.

Furthermore, European carriers’ full year traffic climbed 9.7% versus 2023. Capacity increased 9.2%, and load factor rose 0.4 percentage points to 84.1%. For December, demand climbed 8.6% compared to the same month in 2023.

Middle Eastern airlines saw a 9.4% traffic rise in 2024 compared to 2023. Capacity increased 8.4% and load factor climbed 0.7 percentage points to 80.8%. December demand climbed 7.7% compared to the same month in 2023.

North American carriers reported a 6.8% annual traffic rise in 2024 compared to 2023. Capacity increased 7.4%, and load factor fell -0.5 percentage points to 84.2%. December 2024 traffic rose 5.1% compared to the year-ago period.

Latin American airlines posted a 14.4% traffic rise in 2024 over full year 2023. Annual capacity climbed 14.3% and load factor increased 0.1 percentage points to 84.8%, the highest among the regions. December demand climbed 11.3% compared to December 2023.

Domestic Passenger Markets

Domestic full-year demand reached record highs for passenger numbers and load factors. The standout performer for 2024 Domestic RPK was once again China, which increased 12.3% over 2023. There was stable growth across other major domestic markets. To note, Japan achieved 3.2% growth while capacity contracted by 0.3%. Only India had a fall in load factor (-0.6 %-pt), but still achieved a load factor of 86.4%—the highest among all domestic markets.

1) % of industry RPKs in 2024    2) year-on-year change in load factor    3) Load Factor Level