Despite positive statistics emerging about the global airline industry, proposed airport capacity cuts will destroy jobs and damage economies, says Iata DG Willie Walsh.
Iata reported that global revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) increased by 26% in July 2023 compared with July 2022, recovering up to 95,6% of the pre-pandemic numbers of 2019. Passenger load factor (PLF) was at 85,2%, only 0,4% behind pre-pandemic levels.
“Planes were full during July as people continued to travel in ever greater numbers. Importantly, forward ticket sales indicate that traveller confidence remains high, and there is every reason to be optimistic about the continuing recovery," Walsh said.
Although Walsh was optimistic about these results, he expressed displeasure with service providers’ lack of preparation for the industry’s resurgence.
He pointed out that while the airline industry had prepared for the travel industry’s full recovery to pre-pandemic levels, the same could not be said about its infrastructure partners, referring to the British air services provider, National Air Traffic Services, and its recent meltdown.
Walsh expressed his concerns with governments limiting flight capacity at major airports: "More worrying are political decisions by some governments – among them Mexico and the Netherlands – to impose capacity cuts at their major hubs that will most certainly destroy jobs and damage local and national economies. The numbers tell us that people want and need air connectivity. That's why governments should be working with us so that people can travel safely, sustainably and efficiently."
