March 2025 Passenger Demand Up 3.3% – IATA

African Airlines: 3.3% YOY increase in demand in March 2025. Capacity rose by 5.3% with a load factor of 80.7%.

Aircraft landing
Photo by Photo by Nguyen Hung

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for March 2025 global passenger demand with the following highlights:

Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), was up 3.3% compared to March 2024.

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Total capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASK), was up 5.3% year-on-year. The March load factor was 80.7% (-1.6 ppt compared to March 2024).

International demand rose 4.9% compared to March 2024. Capacity was up 7.0% year-on-year, and the load factor was 79.9% (-1.7 ppt compared to March 2024).

MEA Regional Breakdown

Middle East

  • Middle Eastern carriers saw a -1.0% year-on-year decline in demand.
  • Capacity increased 2.8% year-on-year.
  • The load factor was 74.6% (-2.9 ppt compared to March 2024).
  • IATA notes the decline in demand may be linked to the timing of Ramadan, which impacts travel patterns.

Africa

  • African airlines saw a 3.3% year-on-year increase in demand.
  • Capacity was up 3.5% year-on-year.
  • The load factor was 70.1% (-0.2 ppt compared to March 2024).

Navigating Global Air Travel Growth Amid Economic Uncertainty

Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General, commented:

“There remains a lot of speculation around the potential impacts of tariffs and other economic headwinds on travel.

While the small decline in demand in North America needs to be watched carefully, March numbers continued to show a global pattern of growth for air travel. 

That means the challenges associated with accommodating more people who need to travel—specifically alleviating supply chain problems and ensuring sufficient airport and air traffic management capacity—remain urgent.”

Africa, IATA, MEA, Reports