Return to pre-September 11 levels
ALAN PEAT
AFTER THREE years of successive crises which cost the air transport industry growth and profitability, a positive traffic trend over the last six months has brought it back to pre-September 11, 2001 levels.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) now estimates “a modest industry profit of US$3.2-billion” (R20.4bn) on international operations in 2004, according to director general and CEO, Giovanni Bisignani.
The association’s February traffic results extended the industry’s year on year growth streak to six consecutive months.
International passenger traffic improved 9.8% over February 2003, and international cargo traffic grew 15.7% for the same period. Provisional results for February 2004 against 2003 indicate strong results for all regions.
But the industry’s level of profitability remains a concern for IATA.
“We cannot pin the long-term sustainability of the industry on margins of 2-3%,” said Bisignani. “We are recovering, but the industry remains fragile.
“Continued emphasis on cost reduction and efficiency gains across the industry is essential.”
IATA has called for airports and air navigation service providers to join the industry’s cost reduction efforts.
“While we have had some successes in convincing our monopoly service providers to respond to the industry’s commercial pressures, major problems remain,” said Bisignani.
