India’s aviation market faltering: IATA
02 Nov 2012
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) today said the Indian aviation market is "faltering" amidst a general slide in Asia-Pacific air passenger market. India's domestic passenger traffic had slid nearly 10 per cent compared to a year ago, the global airlines body said.
''Indian domestic traffic plummeted 9.9 per cent compared to a year ago, the worst performance for any market, reflecting the slowing economy and capacity reductions that have suppressed domestic travel. September capacity fell 5.9 per cent, dropping the load factor 2.9 percentage points to 64.9 per cent, the lowest of any market'', IATA said in a report.
Middle East carriers, on the other hand, experienced by far the strongest traffic growth, with demand up 13.3 per cent year-on-year. This was, however, down compared to the 17 per cent growth recorded in August but the growth comparison for August was inflated by seasonal impacts, with Ramadan dampening traffic growth during August 2011. September capacity rose 11.3 per cent and the load factor strengthened to 78.7 per cent.
While China's surge in passenger demand continued with an 11.4 percent hike since last year, "Indian domestic traffic plummeted 9.9 percent compared to a year ago, the worst performance for any market," International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in its global traffic results for September.
European airlines experienced 5.4 per cent growth in international services compared to September 2011, the strongest performance among the major regions despite recession conditions in Europe. With capacity up 3.5 per cent, the load factor reached 83.9 per cent, up 1.5 percentage points on September 2011, and the second highest among the regions.
Asia-Pacific was one of the weakest regions, as demand rose just 1.7 per cent year-on-year. Compared to August, the region recorded a 0.3 per cent decline - the only region to do so. Tight capacity management, however, meant that the load factor rose 1 percentage point against last year's 77.2 per cent.
