Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
- North America was the only market where demand for air travel didn't increase by double digits.
- That's according to data from IATA comparing February to the same month in 2023.
- IATA chief Willie Walsh also warned politicians not to make flying more expensive with new taxes.
North America has lagged behind the rest of the world as demand for airline travel increased.
Globally there was a 21.5% increase in total demand in February compared with the same month last year, according to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The airline trade group measured demand in terms of revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), which is the number of paying travelers multiplied by the distance traveled.
International travel appeared to rise in popularity more than domestic flights. Demand was up more than a quarter compared to a 15% boost for domestic travel.
Since this February included a leap day, there might be an extra bump in comparing the data between years.
However, North America was the only market not to record a double-digit rise in passenger demand.
According to IATA, Asia Pacific had the highest increase in RPK at 37.8%, followed by Africa at 22.5%.
But demand in North America, which accounts for about a quarter of the global airline market, only increased by 8.9%.
The sharper rises in the rest of the world could reflect an ongoing recovery from the pandemic, which happened faster in the US in particular.
"There is good reason to be optimistic about the industry's prospects in 2024," said Willie Walsh, the IATA director-general.
As well as increased demand, he cited more investment in green technologies to help reduce the industry's climate impact.
Walsh also warned politicians to "resist the temptation of cash grabs with new taxes that could destabilize this positive trajectory and make travel more expensive."
He added: "In particular, Europe is a worry as it seems determined to lock in its sluggish economic recovery with uncompetitive tax proposals."