IATA predicts number of airline passengers will nearly double by 2036
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects 7.8 billion passengers to travel by air in 2036, a near doubling of the 4 billion travellers expected to take to the skies this year.
The prediction is based on a 3.6-per-cent average compound annual growth rate noted in the release of the latest update to the association’s “20-Year Air Passenger Forecast”.
The biggest driver of demand will be the Asia-Pacific region, which will be the source of more than half the new passengers over the next two decades, IATA said.
The point at which China will displace the United States as the world’s largest aviation market – defined as traffic to, from and within a country – has moved two years closer since last year’s forecast.
IATA now anticipates that this will occur around 2022, through a combination of slightly faster Chinese growth and slightly reduced growth in the US.
The United Kingdom will fall to fifth place by 2036, surpassed by India in 2025, and Indonesia in 2030.
Thailand and Turkey will enter the top 10 largest markets, while France and Italy will fall in the rankings to 11th and 12th, respectively.
