The demand for international travel started 2023 on the right foot. The suspension of restrictions applied during the covid pandemic, especially in China, which is one of the most important markets for the aviation sector, boosted the demand for airplane seats during the first month of the year, he said. the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in its monthly report.

In January, total passenger traffic increased 67% globally, compared to January 2022, reaching 84.2% of passenger movement in January 2019.

The rapid lifting of covid-19 restrictions for domestic and international travel in China bodes well for the robust recovery of the industry, IATA said. “More importantly, we have not seen the many economic and geopolitical uncertainties that reduce travel demand,” said Willie Walsh, IATA director general.

Panama Increase
In the case of Panama, the movement of passengers in January exceeded the volume of January 2019 by 2.2% and the data from last year by 124%. In total, one million 516 thousand 425 passengers were mobilized in the first month of the year, through the Tocumen International Airport.

Latin American airlines, for their part, maintained their growth rate with a 46.8% increase in passenger traffic and a flight load factor of 82.7% in the first month of the year.

North American air carriers posted an 82.4% increase in January, with occupancy of 79.6% on flights.

Carriers in Europe, for their part, experienced increases of 60.6% in air traffic in January, while demand in the Middle East rose 97.7% and in Africa 124.8%. The Airports Council International estimates that world passenger traffic will reach 92% of 2019 this year, with 8.4 billion travelers.