The International Air Transport Association (IATA) says air travel in Nigeria and other African countries recorded significant growth in February 2022 as Omicron-related impacts moderated outside of Asia while the war in Ukraine, which began on 24 February, did not have a major impact on traffic levels.
According to IATA in a report titled, “Passenger Recovery Accelerates in February,” Total traffic in February 2022 (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) was up 115.9 percent compared to February 2021.
That is an improvement from January 2022, which was up 83.1 percent compared to January 2021. Compared to February 2019, however, traffic was down 45.5 percent.
February 2022 domestic traffic was up 60.7 percent compared to the year-ago period, building on a 42.6 percent increase in January 2022 compared to January 2021. There was wide variation in markets tracked by IATA. Domestic traffic in February was 21.8 percent below the volumes of February 2019.
International RPKs rose 256.8 percent versus February 2021, improving from a 165.5 percent year-over-year increase in January 2022 versus the year-earlier period. All regions improved their performance compared to the prior month. February 2022 international RPKs were down 59.6 percent compared to the same month in 2019.
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“The recovery in air travel is gathering steam as governments in many parts of the world lift travel restrictions. States that persist in attempting to lock-out the disease, rather than managing it, as we do with other diseases, risk missing out on the enormous economic and societal benefits that restoration of international connectivity will bring,” Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director-General said.
African airlines had a 69.5 percent rise in February RPKs versus a year ago, a large improvement compared to the 20.5 percent year-over-year increase recorded in January 2022 compared to the same month in 2021. February 2022 capacity was up 34.7 percent and load factor climbed 12.9 percentage points to 63.0 percent.
European carriers saw their February traffic rise 380.6 percent versus February 2021, improving over the 224.3 percent increase in January 2022 versus the same month in 2021. Capacity rose 174.8 percent, and load factor climbed 30.3 percentage points to 70.9 percent.
Asia-Pacific airlines had a 144.4 percent rise in February traffic compared to February 2021, up somewhat over the 125.8 percent gain registered in January 2022 versus January 2021. Capacity rose 60.8 percent and the load factor was up 16.1 percentage points to 47.0 percent, the lowest among regions.
Middle Eastern airlines’ traffic rose 215.3 percent in February compared to February 2021, well up compared to the 145.0 percent increase in January 2022, versus the same month in 2021. February capacity rose 89.5 percent versus the year-ago period, and load factor climbed 25.8 percentage points to 64.7 percent.
North American carriers experienced a 236.7 percent traffic rise in February versus the 2021 period, significantly increased compared to the 149.0 percent rise in January 2022 over January 2021. Capacity rose 91.7 percent, and load factor climbed 27.4 percentage points to 63.6 percent.
Latin American airlines’ February traffic rose 242.7 percent compared to the same month in 2021, well up over the 155.2 percent rise in January 2022 compared to January 2021. February capacity rose 146.3 percent and load factor increased 21.7 percentage points to 77.0 percent, which was the highest load factor among the regions for the 17th consecutive month.
