Indian airlines record double-digit annual growth: IATA

New Delhi: India's domestic air passenger traffic grew by 26.4 percent year on year, global aviation body, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said.

The IATA, comprising major air carriers, said India continued to witness double-digit growth for the 44th consecutive month.

“India’s airlines recorded double-digit annual growth (26.4%) for the 44th consecutive month, with passenger demand continuing to be supported by a combination of strong economic and network expansion,” IATA said in its report.

Demand for domestic travel climbed 8.5 percent in April compared to April 2017, propelled by double-digit annual growth in India and China, Capacity increased 7.6 percent, and load factor rose 0.7 percentage point to 84.0 percent. All markets reported demand increases.

Globally, the total revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) increased by 6.2% compared to April 2017, which was down from a 12-month high of 9.7% in March.

April capacity (available seat kilometers or ASKs) increased by 5.9 percent, and load factor climbed 0.2 percentage point to 82.3 percent, which was a record for the month of April, surpassing last year’s record of 82.1 percent, it said.

“Demand for air transport continues to be above the long-term trend. However, increases in airline cost inputs, most notably fuel prices, means that we are unlikely to see increased stimulation from lower fares in 2018, compared to previous years,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.

IATA further said that April international passenger demand rose 4.8 percent compared to April 2017. All regions recorded year-over-year traffic increases but all were behind the pace of growth reported in March. Total capacity climbed 4.9 percent, and load factor slipped 0.1 percentage point to 81.4 percent.