Total passenger demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), was up 8.1% in November 2024, compared to the same month a year prior, according to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). In addition, air cargo demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres, was up 8.2% in the month. This marked a 16th consecutive month of growth for air cargo demand.
“The month was also another reminder of the supply chain issues that are preventing airlines from getting the aircraft they need to meet growing demand,” said IATA director general Willie Walsh. “Capacity growth is lagging behind by 2.4 percentage points and load factors are at record levels.”
Total passenger capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASK), was up 5.7% in November year-on-year, while the load factor for the month was up 1.9 percentage point to 83.4% — an all time high for November.
“Airlines are missing out on opportunities to better serve customers, modernise their products and improve their environmental performance because aircraft are not being delivered on time,” continued Walsh.
Walsh said the aerospace manufacturing sector's “2025 New Year's resolution” should be finding a “fast and reliable” solution to the supply chain problem.
International passenger demand was up 11.6%, driven by strong performance from carriers in Europe and Asia-Pacific. In addition, international capacity was up 8.6% and load factor was up 2.3 percentage points to 83.4%.
Domestic demand was up 3.1% in the month, while capacity was up slightly at 1.5%, and load factor for November 2024 was 83.5%, up 1.2 percentage point compared to November 2023.
Air cargo capacity, measured in available cargo tonne kilometres (ACTK), increased 4.6% in November 2024.
“It was a good November for air cargo with 8.2% demand growth nearly doubling the 4.6% growth in cargo capacity,” commented Walsh. “Fuel costs tracked at 22% below previous-year levels and tight market conditions supported yield growth at 7.8%. All things considered we are looking to close out 2024 air cargo performance on a profitable note.”
Walsh said the strong performance of air cargo will “likely extend to 2025”, though some headwinds include inflation, as well as geopolitical and trade tensions.