World growth in air traffic has slowed and left airlines in a “fragile” situation, according to the International Air Transport Association.
IATA has reported a 0.3% monthly fall in passenger demand in March, for which it blamed the tsunami in Japan and upheavals in the Middle East and North Africa.
The association reported: “The recovery in air transport decelerated sharply in March. The global industry lost two percentage points of demand.”
IATA estimates the disaster in Japan led to a 1% reduction in traffic and events in the Middle East to a further 0.9% decline.
It reported Asia-Pacific carriers as the worst affected, but said Europe’s airlines saw a 0.5% loss of traffic in the month.
Traffic to and from Egypt and Tunisia was down by as much as 25% on a year ago.Worldwide load factors fell by 3.5 percentage points, leaving airlines with an increasing number of empty seats while the jet fuel price is close to a record high.
The association reported strong premium demand in the month, but warned: “The second quarter is likely to see continued depressed air travel markets.”
IATA director-general Giovanni Bisignani said: “The big uncertainty is the price of oil. We see strong demand from business for premium travel, but many leisure travellers are putting off flying because of high oil prices.” He added: “The industry’s 1.4% profit margin leaves it vulnerable.”