World air passenger figure to top 3.5bn

World air passenger figure to top 3.5bn
By Daisy Melwani


The number of passengers carried by world airlines is expected to top the 3.5 billion mark for the first time this year.

Passenger growth for 2015 is expected to be 6.75%, an improvement on the 6% growth last year, the International Air Transport Association (Iata) said.

It added that global airlines are expected to make a net profit of $US29.3 billion ($A38.4 billion) in 2015.

Carriers in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to generate a US$5.1 billion profit for a 2.5% net margin and have around a 40% share of the global air cargo market. According to IATA, the slowdown in the Chinese economy has also had a dampening impact on profitability, but demand is expected to grow by 8.1%, slightly ahead of the 7.7% forecast growth in capacity. “Lower fuel costs will help but the stronger dollar reduces the benefit in this region,” IATA stated.

For European carriers Iata is forecasting a collective profit of $US5.8 billion in 2015. It added that the prospects for European airlines had improved slowly over the last two years.

This was particularly true for airlines serving the North Atlantic, with these routes looking set to continue generating decent returns.

Total direct employment in the aviation sector is expected to reach 2.5 million this year – up 3.1% on 2014.

Iata director general and chief executive Tony Tyler said: “For the airline business, 2015 is turning out to be a positive year.

“Since the tragic events of September 2001, the global airline industry has transformed itself with major gains in efficiency.

“This is clearly evident in the expected record-high passenger load factor of 80.2 per cent for this year. The result is a hard-earned four per cent average net profit margin.”

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