International Air Travel Lags 2019 in August: IATA

International air travel remains behind pre-pandemic levels according to recent figures by industry body IATA for peak summer months.

• International traffic increased 30% year-over-year in August and stands at 88.5% of 2019 levels.
• “For the year to date, international traffic has increased by 50% versus last year, and ticket sales data show international bookings strengthening for travel in the last part of the year,” IATA Director General Willie Walsh said.
• Major airlines are looking towards routes out of Asia to help rebuild those figures. Limits on airline capacity, group tours out of China and the geopolitical situation capping U.S.-China flights at artificially low levels, have taken longer to come off according to IATA, leaving significant pent-up demand to the region that is expected to continue into 2024.
• Airline passenger traffic, measured in revenue per available seat kilometers (RASK), was 95.7% of 2019 levels during August, according to IATA. That is up 0.1% from July, and the closest to pre-pandemic levels that it has been since the crisis began.