Global air passenger traffic saw a modest uptick in July 2026, according to fresh data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), inched up by 0.2% compared to the same month in 2025.

Excluding the Middle East region, the growth rate accelerated to 1.2%, painting a slightly brighter picture for most of the industry. Meanwhile, total capacity, gauged by available seat kilometers (ASK), rose by 0.3% year-on-year, with the load factor settling at 85.2%, a marginal dip of 0.1 percentage points.

Diving into the international segment, demand contracted by 0.1% versus July 2025. However, stripping out the Middle East, international traffic climbed by 1.5%. Capacity in this sector expanded by 0.3%, while the load factor stood at 85.2%, representing a drop of 0.3 percentage points from the prior year.

On the domestic front, the story was slightly more upbeat, with demand rising 0.6% year-on-year. Capacity growth was a more moderate 0.2%, but the load factor improved to 85.3%, up 0.3 percentage points from the same period in 2025.

Where the growth is coming from

Commenting on the figures, Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, noted the overall positive performance during the peak Northern Hemisphere summer travel season. She acknowledged that while North American and Middle Eastern carriers experienced year-on-year declines, the global market still managed to expand by 0.2% in July. A key highlight is the continued recovery in traffic through Gulf hubs. Despite persistent headwinds from high fuel costs, economic uncertainty, and geopolitical tensions, airlines remain confident about demand for the remainder of the year, with seat capacity in September already scheduled to increase by nearly 3%.

Regional performance highlights

Looking at the international markets, Asia-Pacific carriers saw demand dip by 0.7% year-on-year. Capacity was trimmed by 1.7%, which helped the load factor rise to 84.5%, a healthy 0.9 percentage point gain. In contrast, European airlines posted a robust 3.1% increase in demand, supported by a 3.2% rise in capacity, resulting in a load factor of 87.1%. The Europe-Asia route was a standout performer, with traffic surging by 12.1%, making it the fastest-growing major international corridor.

Middle Eastern airlines struggled, with demand falling 9.5% and capacity down 5.8%, dragging the load factor to 80.9%. Encouragingly, the pace of decline has been narrowing after the double-digit drops seen earlier in the year. North American carriers also faced headwinds, with demand and capacity both declining by 2.3%. The load factor remained flat at 88.2%. Key North Atlantic routes saw demand soften by 2.2%, with noticeable reductions in traffic originating from the UK, France, and Spain.

Latin American airlines were among the top performers, with demand jumping 7.1% and capacity rising 7.2%, though the load factor dipped slightly to 85.7%. African carriers also delivered strong growth, with demand up 6.4% and capacity expanding by 9.0%, resulting in a load factor of 74.1%.

In the domestic markets, July saw a 0.6% increase in RPK. Growth was particularly strong in China and Brazil, which helped offset declines in the United States, Australia, and India.