Growth in Air Travel and Cargo Demand Reported for February 2025

Preliminary traffic figures for February 2025 released by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) indicate continuous growth in international passenger and cargo markets, buoyed by positive demand from both businesses and consumers across the region.

In his comments, Subhas Menon, AAPA Director General, noted, “In the first two months of the year, combined international passenger traffic for the region’s carriers rose by a robust 13%, amounting to 66 million passengers. Air cargo demand also saw a 4% year-on-year increase, supported by a rise in demand for consumer and intermediate goods.”

Looking forward, Menon added, “Overall, airlines are likely to keep benefiting from persistent travel demand and growth in air shipments due to the ongoing expansion in e-commerce. However, challenges remain, particularly due to rising costs linked to fleet capacity constraints.”

He continued, “The recent surge in protectionist sentiments may pose significant challenges to trade and broader business activities. In light of this, Asian airlines are adopting a cautious approach, closely monitoring changing conditions while also exploring opportunities in promising growth markets.”

In total, 30.8 million international passengers traveled on the region’s airlines in February, showcasing a 5.9% increase over the same month last year, aided by the Lunar New Year holiday period. In revenue passenger kilometre (RPK) terms, demand increased by 9.2% year-on-year, highlighting strong long-haul market performance. Coupled with an 8.6% increase in available seat capacity, the average international passenger load factor edged 0.4 percentage points higher, reaching 82.2% for the month.

Meanwhile, international air cargo demand, assessed in freight tonne kilometres (FTK), grew by 2.8% year-on-year in February, as export activity decelerated across major manufacturing hubs, particularly in China, during the festive celebrations. Freight capacity increased by 6.0%, exceeding demand growth, thereby resulting in a 1.7 percentage point decline in the average international freight load factor to 56.5%.