April air cargo demand up 12% from pre-crisis level: IATA

Global air cargo demand in April was up 12% from its pre-crisis level, according to IATA, as the sector continues to offer a rare positive airline story during the Covid-19 crisis. Measured in cargo tonne kilometres, the performance was led by North American carriers, which contributed 7.5 percentage points to the 12% growth rate in April. All other regions, apart from Latin America, supported the growth, IATA notes. The improvements came amid helpful “underlying economic conditions” and “favourable supply chain dynamics”, the airline industry association explains. The continued low level of long-haul passenger operations in particular – international belly-cargo capacity was down 38.5% during the month – meant freight capacity remained 9.7% below pre-Covid-19 levels in April. IATA states that airlines are continuing to use dedicated freighters to “plug the lack of available belly capacity”, with international capacity from such aircraft rising 26.2% during the month. “Air cargo continues to be the good news story for the air transport sector,” says IATA director general Willie Walsh.<br/>