May 28, 2026
Middle East War Leads to 3.4% Fall in Air Passenger Demand in April
Geneva – The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for April 2026 global passenger demand: · Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), was down -3.4% compared to April 2025. Excluding the Middle East, demand increased by 1.2%. Total capacity, measured in available seat kilometers (ASK), decreased -2.9% year-on-year. The load factor was 83.1% (-0.4…
Geneva – The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for April 2026 global passenger demand:
· Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), was down -3.4% compared to April 2025. Excluding the Middle East, demand increased by 1.2%. Total capacity, measured in available seat kilometers (ASK), decreased -2.9% year-on-year. The load factor was 83.1% (-0.4 ppt compared to April 2025).
· International demand fell -5.3% compared to April 2025. Excluding Middle East, demand grew by 1.9%. Capacity was down -5.1% year-on-year, and the load factor was 83.9% (-0.2 ppt compared to April 2025).
· Domestic demand was flat compared to April 2025. Capacity increased 0.8% year-on-year. The load factor was 81.9% (-0.7 ppt compared to April 2025).
“The 46.6% fall in demand for carriers in the Middle East due to war in the region was so acute that it dragged overall demand down -3.4%. The situation for air transport remains highly volatile. The cost of jet fuel more than doubled in April, which is pushing airfares up. Forward schedule data is showing a reduced offering in the coming months, indicating that airlines are balancing high fuel costs and weaker demand.” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
Air passenger market in detail – April 2026
April 2026
| (% year-on-year) | World share1 | RPK | ASK | PLF (%-pt) | PLF (level) |
| Total Market | 100% | -3.4% | -2.9% | -0.4 | 83.1% |
| Africa | 2.2% | 2.8% | 2.0% | 0.6 | 77.7% |
| Asia Pacific | 34.4% | 1.7% | 0.7% | 0.9 | 85.1% |
| Europe | 26.7% | 0.8% | 0.4% | 0.4 | 85.4% |
| Latin America and Caribbean | 5.4% | 5.0% | 4.3% | 0.5 | 82.9% |
| Middle East | 9.5% | -46.6% | -37.2% | -12.5 | 70.6% |
| North America | 21.8% | -0.3% | 0.3% | -0.5 | 81.5% |
1% of industry RPKs in 2025
Regional Breakdown – International Passenger Markets
International RPK fell -5.3%, with capacity falling -5.1%. However, this decline was caused by continuing heavy falls in demand for Middle East carriers. Excluding the Middle East, RPK increased by 1.9%. North America was flat and all other regions reported growth.
Asia-Pacific airlines achieved a 3.0% year-on-year increase in demand. Capacity increased 0.7% year-on-year, and the load factor was 87.5% (+1.9 ppt compared to April 2025), a record high for April. There was a notable slowdown in traffic on the Japan-China corridor, due to ongoing political tensions.
European carriers saw a 0.9% year-on-year increase in demand. Capacity increased 0.3% year-on-year, and the load factor was 84.9% (+0.6 ppt compared to April 2025). Direct traffic between Europe and Asia increased 15.3% as it replaced traffic transiting through the Middle East.
North American carriers saw a 0.0% year-on-year increase in demand. Capacity decreased -1.1% year-on-year, and the load factor was 83.9% (+0.9 ppt compared to April 2025).
Middle Eastern carriers saw a -48.1% year-on-year decrease in demand. Capacity fell -38.4% year-on-year, and the load factor was 70.1% (-13.1 ppt compared to April 2025). Traffic was impacted by the ongoing Iran war, though the decline slowed a little compared to March, as an uneasy ceasefire came into effect.
Latin American airlines achieved an 8.9% year-on-year increase in demand. Capacity climbed 7.2% year-on-year. The load factor was 84.6% (+1.4 ppt compared to April 2025).
African airlines saw a 2.2% year-on-year increase in demand. Capacity was up 1.2% year-on-year. The load factor was 77.9% (+0.7 ppt compared to April 2025).
Domestic Passenger Markets
Domestic RPK was flat in April compared to April 2025. Growth in Brazil, China, and Japan was balanced out by falls in Australia, India, and the United States. Load factors fell in most of the major markets barring China and Japan, though it should be noted that capacity in the Japanese market has declined for eight months in a row.
April 2026
| (% year-on-year) | World share1 | RPK | ASK | PLF (%-pt) | PLF (level) |
| Domestic | 37.2% | 0.0% | 0.8% | -0.7 | 81.9% |
| Dom. Australia | 0.8% | -0.4% | 3.8% | -3.4 | 79.8% |
| Dom. Brazil | 1.2% | 2.6% | 4.5% | -1.5 | 79.6% |
| Dom. China P.R. | 11.3% | 1.2% | 0.9% | 0.2 | 84.2% |
| Dom. India | 1.7% | -2.9% | 2.3% | -4.3 | 81.6% |
| Dom. Japan | 1.0% | 3.7% | -1.4% | 3.7 | 74.7% |
| Dom. US | 13.6% | -0.6% | 1.0% | -1.2 | 79.6% |
1% of industry RPKs in 2025
Note: the six domestic passenger markets for which broken-down data are available account for approximately 29.6% of global total RPKs and 79.4% of total domestic RPKs.
Read the latest Passenger Market Analysis
For more information, please contact:
Corporate Communications
Tel: +41 22 770 2967
Email: corpcomms@iata.org
• IATA (International Air Transport Association) represents over 370 airlines accounting for some 85% of global air traffic.
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• Fly Net Zero.
• All figures are provisional and represent total reporting at time of publication plus estimates for missing data. Historic figures are subject to revision.
• Domestic RPKs accounted for about 37.2% of the total market in 2025. The six domestic markets in this report account for 29.6% of global RPKs.
• Explanation of measurement terms:
• RPK: Revenue Passenger Kilometers measures actual passenger traffic
• ASK: Available Seat Kilometers measures available passenger capacity
• PLF: Passenger Load Factor is % of ASKs used
• IATA statistics cover international and domestic scheduled air traffic for IATA member and non-member airlines.
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