IATA on growth of air cargo transportation worldwide

The volume of air cargo transportation worldwide increased in September 2021 by 9.1% over the same period in 2019, Report informs, citing a press release of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

In August, similar growth was 7.5%, the press release notes. From September 2021 to September 2020, the growth of the indicator is estimated at 15.1%.

"Air cargo was up 9.1% in September to the pre-COVID-19 level. The benefit is supply chain congestion as manufacturers turn to air for speed. But severe load constraints continue to limit the ability of air cargo to meet additional demand." said the head of IATA, Willie Walsh. If these problems are not addressed, the supply chain disruptions could slow economic recovery amid the pandemic, Walsh said.

At the same time, passenger air traffic in September decreased by 53.4% compared to the pre-crisis level (September 2019) after falling by 56% in August. The volume of international passenger air transportation in September fell by 69.2% compared to September 2019, domestic - by 24.3%.

According to IATA, the largest drop to pre-crisis levels was recorded in the Asia-Pacific region (-69%) and the Middle East (-65.9%). The decline in Africa was 61.4%, in Europe - 50.3%, and in Latin America - 39.4%. The smallest decline was observed in North America - by 30.5%.

According to the association, the strongest growth in air cargo traffic in September compared to the pre-COVID-19 September 2019 was observed in Africa (32.8%), North America (22.6%), and the Middle East (17.6%). In Europe, there was more moderate growth of 5.9%. A decrease was recorded in the countries of Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region - by 15.7% and 0.2%, respectively.

In particular, the volume of international air cargo traffic increased by 9.4% compared to September 2019, and by September 2020 it increased by 18.4%.

According to the Federal Air Transport Agency, the volume of air cargo transportation in Russia in September increased by 37.9% in annual terms. Russian airlines increased international cargo transportation by 40.7%, domestic - by 23.8%.