Original article: news247.gr
The latest data released by the International Airline Association (IATA) shows a significant increase in air traffic around the world for the month of March 2023, with Heraklion and Athens airports leading the way in Greece. This increase in demand for air travel was observed across the globe and continued into April, at least for the airports in Athens and Heraklion where data is available.
According to the IATA data, total air traffic in March 2023 increased by 52.4% compared to March 2022. Globally, traffic is currently at 88.0% of levels of March 2019, indicating a significant recovery in the aviation industry after the pandemic.
Rise in April for Athens and Heraklion of the Greek Airports.
For the Greek Airports, domestic air traffic for March was up 34.1% compared to last year's period. Total March 2023 domestic air traffic was at 98.9% of March 2019 levels. The data also shows that international traffic grew by 68.9% compared to March 2022, with all markets recording healthy growth, and the carriers in the Asia-Pacific region performing the best. International traffic reached 81.6% of March 2019 levels, while the load factor at 81.3% exceeded the March 2019 level by 10.1 percentage points.
This trend continued into April, with both Athens and Heraklion airports reporting a rise in foreign arrivals. Heraklion International Airport recorded an increase of 10.85% compared to April 2022, with 202,047 foreign arrivals. Domestic traffic also performed well, with an increase of 20.55%, and 61,408 passengers landing at Heraklion airport, compared to 50,941 passengers in April last year.
Similarly, Athens airport saw a rise of 29.8% in foreign arrivals compared to April last year, with 1,476,030 passengers landing at "El. Venizelos". Compared to April 2019, the increase reached 4.4%. In the first four months of the year, 4,526,242 passengers arrived in Athens from abroad, which is a significant increase of 54.7% compared to 2022 and 3.4% compared to 2019.
It's worth noting that for April, more than 1.6 million air seats were scheduled from abroad to Greece, coming from more than 50 countries around the world. Apart from Athens and Heraklion, other airports across Greece saw a significant increase in scheduled air seats. Thessaloniki had 215,000, Chania had 65,000, Rhodes had 135,000, Kos had over 30,000, Corfu had more than 60,000, Santorini had over 36,000, and Mykonos had about 15,000.
Increase in air demand internationally.
The rise in demand for air travel internationally is being attributed to several factors. According to Willie Walsh, General Director of IATA, domestic travel has been close to pre-pandemic levels for months, and two key benchmarks have been observed for international travel. The first benchmark is the increase in demand by 3.5 percentage points compared to the previous month's growth, reaching 81.6% of pre-COVID levels. This led to a near-tripling of demand for Asia-Pacific carriers as China's resurgence took hold. The second benchmark is the improvement in performance, with international load factors reaching 81.3%. Furthermore, ticket sales for both domestic and international travel indicate that strong growth will continue into the peak of the Northern Hemisphere summer season.
However, Mr. Walsh notes that despite the positive trend, there are still some challenges facing the industry. Carrier capacity is falling short of demand, with labor shortages, delays in the delivery of new aircraft, and strikes by air traffic controllers in Europe contributing to the shortfall. Nevertheless, the rise in air demand is a promising sign for the recovery of the tourism industry worldwide.
Facts:
According to the International Airline Association (IATA) data, air traffic around the world in March 2023 increased by 52.4% compared to March 2022.
Global air traffic is currently at 88.0% of levels of March 2019, indicating a significant recovery in the aviation industry after the pandemic.
Domestic air traffic in Greece for March 2023 was up 34.1% compared to last year's period, and total March 2023 domestic air traffic was at 98.9% of March 2019 levels.
International air traffic in Greece grew by 68.9% compared to March 2022, with all markets recording healthy growth, and the carriers in the Asia-Pacific region performing the best.
In April 2023, Athens and Heraklion airports reported a rise in foreign arrivals. Heraklion International Airport recorded an increase of 10.85% compared to April 2022, with 202,047 foreign arrivals, while Athens airport saw a rise of 29.8% in foreign arrivals compared to April last year, with 1,476,030 passengers landing at "El. Venizelos".
More than 1.6 million air seats were scheduled from abroad to Greece for April, coming from more than 50 countries around the world, with other airports across Greece seeing a significant increase in scheduled air seats.
The rise in demand for air travel internationally is being attributed to several factors, including domestic travel being close to pre-pandemic levels for months and two key benchmarks observed for international travel.
The first benchmark is the increase in demand by 3.5 percentage points compared to the previous month's growth, reaching 81.6% of pre-COVID levels.
The second benchmark is the improvement in performance, with international load factors reaching 81.3%.
Ticket sales for both domestic and international travel indicate that strong growth will continue into the peak of the Northern Hemisphere summer season.
Challenges facing the industry include carrier capacity falling short of demand, with labor shortages, delays in the delivery of new aircraft, and strikes by air traffic controllers in Europe contributing to the shortfall.
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