Strong growth in domestic air traffic in September: IATA

PTI

 The domestic air passenger traffic in India grew by a whopping 23.6 per cent in September over the past year as against the global average of 7.2 per cent during the period, an IATA press release said on Friday.

The demand in air travel in India was more than five times of the US air passenger growth, which stood at 4.6% in September this year over the same period of 2015, according to a data by International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The domestic demand climbed 7.2% in September compared to September 2015, which was up from the 4.1% y-o-y growth recorded in August with India and China continuing to experience a double-digit increase in their annual traffic.

However, the results elsewhere were decidedly mixed, IATA said and added that all markets except Australia registered all-time highs in September seat factor.

At the same time, International traffic rose 6.9% in September with airlines in all six regions --European, Asia Pacific, Middle East, North America and Latin America-- recording growth compared to 2015, IATA said.

According to the data barring India and China, which registered 23.6% and 14% increase in domestic air traffic in September, respectively, all other major markets --Australia, Brazil, Japan, Russia and the US -- witnessed single digit growth,.

The US domestic traffic resumed its healthy growth after a slowdown in July and August, rising 4.6% in September year-over-year, while Japan's domestic traffic slid 0.7% in September against a backdrop of weak consumer spending, IATA said.

"September's growth in passenger demand was healthy.

Importantly, this rebound from August weakness suggests that travel demand is showing its resilience in the aftermath of terror attacks.

"And overall the industry is still vulnerable to being buffeted by rising geopolitical tensions, protectionist political agendas, and weak economic fundamentals," IATA Director General and Chief Executive Officer Alexandre de Juniac said.

"This will still be a good year for the airline industry's performance, but our profitability will continue to be hard-won," the IATA DG added.