Global air travel rebounds to 74% of pre-pandemic levels

Global air travel continued its recovery from the pandemic in September as passenger traffic surged 57% compared with 2021, trade association figures have shown. Passenger traffic reached 74% of pre-pandemic levels in September as people rushed back to travel following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, data from the IATA has also shown on Monday. The Asia Pacific, which was slower than other regions to lift border restrictions, recorded by far the biggest jump in travel, with passenger traffic soaring 465% compared with last year. Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan recently lifted border restrictions in an effort to revive their pandemic-battered travel industries. China, the region’s biggest economy by far, continues to restrict non-essential travel by its citizens and subject all arrivals to 10 days of quarantine under its ultra-strict “dynamic zero COVID” policy. Middle Eastern airlines recorded the next biggest rise in passenger traffic, up 150%, followed by North American and Latin American airlines, which saw traffic rise 129% and 99%, respectively. IATA DGWillie Walsh welcomed the figures as a positive sign for global aviation in the face of economic and geopolitical uncertainties. “The outlier is still China with its pursuit of a zero-COVID strategy keeping borders largely closed and creating a demand roller coaster ride for its domestic market, with September being down 46.4% on the previous year,” Walsh said.<br/>