Global Airline Capacity Falls Following Summer Peak: OAG

Global airline capacity fell by 0.5m seats - or 0.4% - in the week to Aug.17, according to OAG data, as demand begins to subside following the summer peak in air travel.

• Global airline capacity now stands at 116.2m seats per week, expected to decline further and average 113.7m seats per week over the next three months.
• Almost two thirds of the weekly fall in capacity came from a reduction in domestic seats, down 0.4m.
• The seasonal reduction is in line with historical trends, with the weekly decline lower than the 0.8m fall at the same time in 2019. Typically, airline capacity falls as the summer holiday season in the northern hemisphere draws to a close.
• While global air travel demand has rebounded this year, it was still 1.5% below 2019 levels in the week to Aug. 14. Domestic capacity globally is 3.2% above 2019 levels, with international capacity lagging at 7.7% below pre-pandemic numbers.
• Southeast Asia remains the region furthest below its pre-pandemic capacity, at 16.3% below.