OAG International, the provider of airports and airline data, said the latest data for the air transport sector showed a 7% increase in seat capacity in the week beginning May 15, compared to the previous week.
The foundation confirmed that airlines will occupy a total of about 40 million seats scheduled in the 21st week since the crisis of "Covid-19", starting from January 20, 2020, noting that despite these data, the global capacity is still less than 75 million seats compared to the period Same last year.
She pointed to the events and activities that contribute to increasing the pace of the sector's recovery, adding, "It seems that the return of football in the Premier League this week has resulted in more than one million additional seats per week in Western Europe, where the United Kingdom topped the list with an increase of 88% in capacity. Despite UK quarantine requirements, there are about 22,000 additional international seats in this market. "
It indicated that airlines in the Middle East region will occupy a total of about 1.6 million seats this week, with a growth rate of 3% compared to the previous week, pointing out that many markets recorded weekly growth with the addition of a million scheduled seats to the Northeast Asia market, where it decreased Its total capacity is now only 34% above pre-Coved-19 levels, in January, supported by a revitalization of the inland transportation market.
The Foundation pointed out that there is no escaping the changes or cancellations in the scheduled flights that take place in the last moments in a market recovering from this large decrease in capacity, especially in those markets where the capacity is relatively close to the levels before "Coffed-19", noting that, however , Some markets perform better than others. In Japan, current cancellation rates are around 29%.
The Foundation said that this week's data indicates that about 80 million seats will be operated in the first full week of July, highlighting the size of the capacity reductions that can be expected in the next few weeks; Breaking the barrier of 45 million seats at that point would be crucial, noting that airlines adjust their capacity and flight schedules in line with demand expectations and applicable travel restrictions.