Record year for international PAX numbers

December statistics

by ORIENT AVIATION 

April 1st 2013

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Asia-Pacific airlines carried a total of 18.3 million international passengers in December, 7.3% more than the same month last year. The increase reflected an overall improvement in trade activities and business confidence. Read More »

International passenger traffic, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs), rose 6.6%, supported by strong demand for regional short-haul routes. Available seat capacity grew a relatively conservative 2.9%, which resulted in a 2.8 percentage point increase in the average international passenger load factor (PLF), to 78.3% for the month.  

Led by continued growth in the region’s economies, passenger markets registered an encouraging 7.2% rise in international passengers carried in 2012 to 207.4 million, surpassing the previous peak achieved in 2007 by 19.5%. Traffic demand in RPK terms grew 5.8% during the same period whilst available seat capacity increased 3.8%. This led to a 1.5 percentage point increase in the average international PLF to 77.9%.

 FREIGHT

International air cargo demand of Asia-Pacific based carriers, expressed in freight tonne kilometres (FTKs), declined 1.9% in December. Offered freight capacity fell 3.2%, which led to a marginal 0.9 percentage point increase in the average international freight load factor (FLF), to 67.7% for the month.

Overall, due to persistently weak global trading conditions, the region’s carriers reported a 3.4% drop in international freight demand for 2012, marking the second consecutive year of decline following a 4.6% fall the previous year. Available freight capacity fell 3.2%, which resulted in a marginal 0.1 percentage point drop in the average international FLF to 66.5% for the year.

JANUARY

Preliminary figures showed that collectively airlines based in the Asia-Pacific carried 17.5 million international passengers in January, almost matching numbers achieved in the same month last year. International passenger traffic, measured in RPKs, grew 0.5%. Coupled with a one percent increase in available seat capacity, the average international PLF declined 0.3 percentage points to 78% for the month.

International air cargo demand in the region, measured in FTKs, saw firm growth of 4.3% compared with January last year. The average Asia-Pacific international FLF was 2.9 percentage points higher at 62.8% for the month, on a 0.4% contraction in available freight capacity.

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This report was compiled by the Research and Statistics Department of the AAPA Secretariat.