European air traffic grows 6.8%
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International air traffic on European carriers grew 6.8% in August this year despite economic difficulties.
The growth was against a 6% increase in capacity, meaning the load factor remained stabilised at 86%.
The positive numbers were slightly ahead of the global average which saw RPKs up 5.9% against a 5.5% boost in capacity, with load factors at 83.9%.
Middle Eastern carriers saw the largest traffic growth at 11.7%, followed by Latin American airlines and African carriers by 8.2% and 7.5% respectively.
“August was a good month right across the industry. All regions reported an expansion in demand for air travel. And load factors were high, reflecting the fact that August is peak travel season in the Northern hemisphere,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s director general and CEO.
He added: “We should, however, keep an eye on potential downside risks. European travel, for example, continues to show robust growth. The 6.1% year-to-date expansion in demand reflects a solid step up from the 3.8% growth recorded in 2013. But it remains a question how long the robust trend in passenger travel can continue in light of the continent’s increasingly worrying economic outlook.”
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