IATA expects airlines to earn $30.5 billion in 2024, up 11.3% from a year ago

04-06-24

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects airline net profits to reach $30.5 billion (€28.143 billion) by 2024, up 11.3% from $27.4 billion (€25.283 billion).

According to the forecasts published by the entity, total revenues in 2024 are expected to grow by 9.7% year-on-year to a record $996 billion (€919.058 billion), while growth in expenses will be slightly lower, at 9.4%, for a total of $936 billion (€863.693 billion).

Meanwhile, some 4.96 billion people are expected to travel in 2024, an all-time high that exceeds the level of 2023 and the pre-pandemic recorded in 2019. In addition, cargo volumes are estimated at 62 million tons 2024.

For IATA Director General Willie Walsh, the airline industry is on the path to sustainable profits, but “there is still a long way to go.”

“A 5.7% return on invested capital is well below the cost of capital, which is over 9%. And earning just $6.14 per passenger is indicative of how meager our profits are, barely enough for a coffee in many parts of the world,” Walsh lamented.

Along these lines, the IATA director general said that in order to improve profitability it is “fundamental” to solve supply chain problems so that fleets can be deployed “efficiently” to meet demand.

In 2024, an inventory of 38.7 million flights is expected to be available, a figure 1.4 million flights lower than previous estimates (December 2023), largely attributable to a slowdown in the pace of deliveries in the face of persistent supply chain issues in the aerospace sector.