Global air cargo business hits record, little take-off in passenger market

London (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) - Demand for cargo planes has soared past pre-Covid-19 levels to a record high, and there were signs of recovery in the passenger market, data from the International Air Transport association (IATA) shows Tuesday.

Worldwide demand for air cargo, measured by how many tons was flown a kilometre, was up 4.4% in March year-on-year, and also up 0.4% from February.

But the rate of growth slowed sharply amid weaker performances by airlines in Asia-Pacific and Africa.

February's demand figures were up 9.2% from January.  

Airlines are using dedicated freighter planes for cargo business because so many passenger planes, which usually carry freight in their belly, are grounded.

International capacity from dedicated freighters rose 20.6% in March 2021 compared to the same month in 2019 and belly-cargo capacity dropped by 38.4%

Meanwhile, the number of people flying around the world also improved in March from February, although the two-year comparison still showed a fall, measured against pre-Covid levels in March 2019.

Total demand for air travel, in terms of how many kilometres were flown by passengers, was down 67.2%.

But that was an improvement on the 74.9% decline seen in February versus the same month in 2019.

International passenger demand in March was 87.8% below March 2019, a very small rise on the 89% decline recorded in February 2019.

But the domestic markets are recovering, with passenger demand down 32.3% from March 2019, compared to February when it was down 51.2%.

With the exception of Brazil and India, domestic passenger markets saw a bounce back globally, particularly in China.