African Airlines recorded a 14.9% increase in passenger demand in January 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.
Capacity increased 11.2% year-on-year, and the load ratio increased to 75.9%, an increase of 2.4 points from January 2024.
This indicates that more seats are available and a higher percentage of them have been met by passengers.
Data was obtained from the January 2025 Global Passenger Demand Report, recently published by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
“Africa Airlines saw a 14.9% increase in demand from the previous year. Capacity increased by 11.2% year-on-year. Load factor rose to 75.9% (+2.4 PPT compared to January 2024),” IATA's report in part.
The report highlights robust growth in all international passenger markets, showing Africa one of the strongest profits year over year.
The January 2025 figures show that Africa is superior to several other regions when it comes to growth in demand, highlighting the role of continental growth in global aviation. African Airlines continued to expand its ability to meet increasing demand, achieving a load rate of 75.9%. This was a noticeable improvement compared to the previous year.
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Globally, total passenger demand has increased by 10.0% compared to January 2024, while international demand has increased by 12.4%. The overall load rate for January 2025 was 82.1%, a January all-time high, highlighting the continued recovery and increased confidence in air travel.
Asia-Pacific airlines achieved global growth, bringing an increase in demand of 21.8% year-on-year. The capacity in this region increased by 16.5%, with the load factor reaching 86.7%, the highest of all regions. Latin American Airlines recorded a 12.9% increase in demand, but capacity was even faster at 15.5%, dropping slightly to 84.3% capacity. The load factor was 83.8%, an increase of 4.0 percentage points from January 2024. European airlines saw a 8.6% increase in demand growth, while capacity rose 6.2%, with a load factor of 79.2% recorded. The capacity increased by just 0.6%, and the load factor reached 81.8%. Despite slow growth, all regions except Latin America experienced year-over-year improvements in load factors. Overall global performance in January 2025 shows a significant acceleration of demand driven by strong performance from airlines in the Asia-Pacific region. Record-high load factors point to sustained supply chain challenges in the aerospace sector, according to Willie Walsh, executive director of IATA.
He also said that strong demand growth was consistent with the November 2024 passenger survey, revealing that most travelers plan to maintain or increase travel frequency over the next 12 months. The airline effectively managed increasing demand and maintained a high level of customer satisfaction despite fleet and infrastructure constraints.
