Demand For Air Travel Up 6.3 Pct In 2016 -- IATA

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 3 (Bernama) -- Demand for air travel rose by 6.3 per cent in 2016 compared to 2015 boosted by establishments of new routes by airlines and cheaper return fares, said International Air Transport Association (IATA). Its Director-General/Chief Executive Officer, Alexandre de Juniac, said connectivity increased with the establishment of over 700 new routes while a US$44 (US$1 = RM4.42) decrease in average return fares helped make air travel even more accessible. "As a result, a record 3.7 billion passengers flew safely to their destinations," he said in a statement Thursday. He said the strong performance was well ahead of the ten-year average annual growth rate of 5.5 per cent with capacity up 6.2 per cent compared to 2015, pushing the load factor up 0.1 percentage point to a record full-year average high of 80.5 per cent. "A particularly strong performance was reported for December with an 8.8 per cent rise in demand outstripping 6.6 per cent capacity growth," he said. de Juniac said international passenger traffic rose 6.7 per cent last year compared to 2015 with capacity up 6.9 per cent. The load factor, however, eased 0.2 percentage point to 79.6 per cent, he said. He said all regions recorded year-over-year increases in demand lead by Middle East carriers (+11.8 per cent), followed by Asia Pacific carriers (+8.3 per cent), Latin American and African airlines (+7.4 per cent each), European carriers (+4.8 per cent) and North American airlines (+2.6 per cent). Meanwhile, he said, domestic air travel rose 5.7 per cent last year with capacity up 5.1 per cent and load factor was up 0.5 percentage point over 2015 to 82.2 per cent. He said all major markets, except Brazil, showed growth but India and China's expansion of 23.3 per cent and 11.7 per cent respectively were the stand-out performers underpinned by additional routes and increasing flight frequencies, with the latter looking set to continue in 2017. de Juniac said with the demand for air travel continued to expand, the challenge for governments was to work with the industry to meet that demand with infrastructure that could accommodate the growth, regulation that facilitated growth and taxes that would not choke growth. "If we can achieve that, there is plenty of potential for a safe, secure and sustainable aviation industry to create more jobs and increase prosperity," he said. He said freedom to connect through air travel drove prosperity and enriched societies and could only be given its fullest expression when governments facilitated the movements of people and goods without compromising security and competitiveness. "Aviation is the business of freedom. And we must defend its social and economic benefits from barriers to travel and protectionist agendas," he said. He added that with four billion people projected to travel by air this year it would offer an opportunity to build an even better world through the positive impacts of globalisation -- mutual understanding, innovation and business opportunities. -- BERNAMA