Quarterly
Air Transport Chartbook
Q4 2024
The IATA Quarterly Air Transport Chartbook is a quarterly analytical report of the air transport industry, combining detailed charts with insightful, data-driven commentary. It provides a timely and comprehensive overview of industry trends, focusing on critical areas such as the global economic landscape, energy transitions, passenger and cargo traffic, air connectivity, and regional performance.
Scroll down to explore insights from Q4 2024
The business cycle
GDP growth in the US in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024 stood at 2.3% annualized (the quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) growth rate multiplied by four). This is down from 3.1% on the same basis in Q3. Comparing Q4 2024 to the same quarter in 2023 (YoY), the growth rate was 2.5%, a slight deceleration from 2.7% in Q3. For 2024 as a whole (annual level over 2023), GDP increased by 2.8%, after 2.9% in 2023 (Chart 1).
In China, GDP grew by 5.4% YoY in Q4, and by 1.6% QoQ, which was above most expectations. The full-year growth rate for 2024 came in at 5.0%, meeting the government’s target. In spite of this rather strong number, China’s economy is experiencing tepid domestic demand, persistent deflationary pressures (Chart 3), and a flailing property market.
Real GDP growth rate in major economies, % YoY
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Cumulative total renewable fuel capacity, million tonne
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Sustainable Aviation Fuel
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) is recognized as a crucial lever in achieving the airline industry's net-zero CO₂ target by 2050, potentially contributing 65% of the necessary emissions reductions.
However, despite various policy initiatives and national commitments, the production of SAF is slow to scale up. SAF production reached 1 million tonnes (Mt) in 2024, which is double the output from 2023, yet only 0.3% of global jet fuel demand.
According to IATA estimates, production is expected to double again in 2025, reaching 2.1 Mt. This would represent 0.7% of global jet fuel consumption.
IATA monitors the SAF facilities announced worldwide and their various stages of development. This effort is essential for evaluating the realistic availability of SAF on the ground. Our data is based on publicly announced renewable fuel projects scheduled to be completed by 2030.
Currently, we have identified 158 projects that are either operational or in development for SAF production across 37 countries, with a combined renewable fuel capacity of approximately 51 Mt (Chart 10).
Passenger traffic
Air travel demand was strong in Q4 2024, with industry-wide Revenue Passenger-Kilometer (RPK) increasing by 8.0% YoY, outpacing the growth seen in Q3 (Chart 12). Total passenger traffic reached a record 2.2 trillion RPK in Q4, the highest for any fourth quarter. Seasonally adjusted global RPK rose 2.2% from Q3 2024 to an all-time high.
The Passenger Load Factor (PLF), a crucial indicator of air travel demand, reached a new high in Q4 at 83.8%, an increase of 1.7 percentage points over the year (Chart 13). The relatively slower YoY increase in Available Seat-Kilometers (ASK) of 5.8%, coupled with strong demand for air travel, helped push the load factor higher (Chart 14).
Persistent supply chain issues faced by aircraft manufacturers are curtailing the industry's ability to increase capacity to meet the higher demand. Similar patterns were observed across multiple regions, as growth in RPK outpaced that in ASK, and load factors exceeded those of the previous years.
Industry total RPK, billion
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Industry CTK, billion
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Cargo traffic
The air cargo industry continued to grow in 2024, setting a new historic high in terms of traffic. Air cargo demand rose by 8.3% YoY in Q4 2024, growing for the sixth quarter in a row (Chart 23). This quarter's air cargo traffic was the strongest on record, with cargo tonne-kilometers (CTK) reaching 73 billion, surpassing the previous record set in Q4 2021 by 0.3 billion, and Q4 2023 by 5.6 billion. However, the momentum is easing.
After adjusted for seasonality, global air cargo traffic dipped slightly in Q4 2024, slipping by 0.1 billion QoQ (Chart 24). This marked the end of a streak of quarterly gains. After a year of contraction through 2022, the sector began to expand in 2023, posting steady growth throughout the year. That momentum carried into early 2024, peaking in Q1 2024 before gradually slowing down.