The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has reported sustained growth in global air passenger demand for November, with total demand rising by 8.1% year-on-year. This growth was driven by an 11.6% increase in international demand, while domestic demand also rose by 3.1%.

Total air passenger capacity expanded by 5.7% year-on-year in November, reflecting an 8.6% rise in international capacity and a 1.5% increase in domestic capacity.

The overall passenger load factor for November stood at 83.4%, which was a 1.9 percentage point increase over the figure for November 2023. The international load factor matched this figure, rising by 2.3 percentage points, while the domestic load factor slightly surpassed it at 83.5%, a year-on-year increase of 1.2 percentage points.

“November was another month of strong growth in the demand for air travel with an overall expansion of 8.1%,” affirmed IATA director-general Willie Walsh.

 “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. Capacity growth is lagging demand by 2.4 percentage poiints and load factors are at record levels. 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. The 2025 New Year’s resolution for the aerospace manufacturing sector must be finding a fast and durable solution for their supply chain issues.”

The IATA region which, in November, saw the strongest year-on-year growth in total air passenger demand was the Asia-Pacific, with a figure of 14%. Second place went to Africa, with 10.9%, followed by the Middle East (8.9%), Europe (8.3%), and Latin America (7%). North America actually recorded a slight contraction, of -0.7%.

Regarding international flights, the region that saw the greatest year-on-year increase in demand in November was again the Asia-Pacific, at 19.9%. Africa remained second, with 12.4% growth, followed by Latin America (11.4%). In fourth place was Europe (9.4%), then the Middle East (8.7%) and North America (3.1%).    

IATA routinely monitored six major domestic air travel markets – Australia, Brazil, China, India, Japan and the US.

“Signs of stable growth were shown in all [these] markets except in the US which saw a 2.7% contraction, deeper than the 1.2% [year-on-year] dip recorded in October,” reported IATA. “This is part of a slowing trend in the US domestic market since June 2024 and mainly reflects lower low-cost carrier activity. US mainline carriers have continued to see growth over the same period.”

Of the other domestic markets, the one that saw the strongest year-on-year growth in November was India, at 13.3%, followed by China (10.5%) and then Brazil (9.6%). Then came Japan (4%) and Australia (0.8%).