Global Air Passenger Demand In February Drops 14%, Biggest Decline Since 9/11- Trade Group

Global Air Passenger Demand in February Drops 14%, Biggest Decline Since 9/11- Trade Group

Passenger airline ticket demand for on international and domestic flights took its biggest hit in February since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, falling more than 14 percent from the previous year, as the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic took hold, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in a press release on Monday

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd April, 2020) Passenger airline ticket demand for on international and domestic flights took its biggest hit in February since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, falling more than 14 percent from the previous year, as the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic took hold, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in a press release on Monday.

"Airlines were hit by a sledgehammer called COVID-19 in February," the release said. "This was the steepest decline in traffic since 9.11 and reflected collapsing domestic travel in China and sharply falling international demand to/from and within the Asia-Pacific region, owing to the spreading COVID-19 virus and government-imposed travel restrictions."

Global demand for domestic travel dropped 20.9 percent compared to February 2019, as Chinese domestic market collapsed in the face of the government lockdown, while global passenger traffic data, as measured in total revenue passenger kilometers fell 14.1, percent compared to February 2019, the release said.

The impact on aviation has left airlines with few options other than to cut costs and take emergency measures in an attempt to survive, the release added.

While the drop in global demand was severe, it paled in comparison to a 41 percent drop for carriers in the Asia-Pacific region - a fallout that appears to have grown worse in March, according to the release.