There was strong growth in air travel this March, according to the latest research from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The organization found that total flight traffic grew 52.4% compared to March 2022. Globally, traffic is now at 88% of March 2019 levels. North American carriers’ traffic climbed 51.6% in March 2023 versus the 2022 period. Capacity increased 34.0%, and load factor rose to 84.8%.
Our Analysis: The U.S. Air Travel System Is Not Prepared to Handle Growth
With demand for air travel on the rise both domestically and globally in the U.S., it’s time to address the shortcomings of the country’s air travel system. According to the U.S. Travel Association, the system is “woefully underfunded and understaffed,” and will not be able to prevent challenges such as pilot and air traffic controller shortages, congestion and flight cancellations and delays this summer. Fortunately, this year’s Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization bill is an opportunity for policymakers to put much-needed changes into motion.
Part of this capacity shortfall is attributable to the widely reported labor shortages impacting many parts of the aviation value chain, as well as supply chain issues affecting the aircraft manufacturing sector that are resulting in aircraft delivery delays.
What They Are Saying: Domestic Travel Has Returned Around the World, But Many Travelers Will Be Disappointed This Summer
“The calendar year first quarter ended on a strong note for air travel demand,” said Willie Walsh, director general of IATA. “Domestic markets have been near their pre-pandemic levels for months. And for international travel two key waypoints were topped. First, demand increased by 3.5 percentage points compared to the previous month’s growth, to reach 81.6% of pre-COVID-19 levels. This was led by a near-tripling of demand for Asia-Pacific carriers as China’s reopening took hold. And efficiency is improving as international load factors reached 81.3%. Even more importantly, ticket sales for both domestic and international travel give every indication that strong growth will continue into the peak Northern Hemisphere summer travel season.”
“As traveler expectations build toward the peak Northern Hemisphere summer travel season, airlines are doing their best to meet the desire and need to fly,” Walsh added. “Unfortunately, a lack of capacity means that some of those travelers may be disappointed. Part of this capacity shortfall is attributable to the widely reported labor shortages impacting many parts of the aviation value chain, as well as supply chain issues affecting the aircraft manufacturing sector that are resulting in aircraft delivery delays. However, a significant share of recent flight cancellations, primarily in Europe, are owing to job actions by air traffic controllers and others. These irresponsible actions resulted in thousands of unnecessary cancellations in March. This is unacceptable and should not be tolerated by the authorities.”
