Asia Pacific airlines carry 25.7m international passengers in August 2023

Preliminary August 2023 traffic figures from the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) show further recovery in international passenger markets, underpinned by robust travel demand and expansion in city-pair connections from both outside and within the region. In total, Asia Pacific airlines carried 25.7m international passengers in August 2023, a solid 129.7% year-on-year growth compared to the same month last year, bringing demand to average 76.5% of pre-pandemic levels. In revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), demand rose by 102% year-on-year, whilst available seat capacity expanded by 88.7%, leading to a 5.4 percentage point increase in the average international passenger load factor to 82.8%. “Despite the moderation in global economic activity, demand has continued to grow in the services sectors, including travel and tourism,” said Subhas Menon, AAPA Director General. “Against this background, Asia Pacific airlines saw a healthy 232% increase in the number of international passengers carried to a combined 171m during the first eight months of the year.” Air cargo demand, measured in freight tonne kilometers (FTK), saw a slight 1.8% year-on-year fall in August when compared to the subdued volumes recorded in the same month last year.<br/>