REPORT International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO): 2.3 billion passengers were transported by air in 2021!

According to a preliminary report by the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization), approx 2,3 billion passengers were transported by air în 2021. It is a decrease of about 50% compared to 2019, when about 4,5 billion passengers were transported. 2019 was the last full year before the Covid-19 pandemic, according to preliminary figures from International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

Clearly, 2021 passenger air traffic is half that of 2019! However, the year 2021 was better than 2020 when the decrease was about 60%, points out the United Nations agency responsible for civil aviation.

Airlines are still severely affected by this historic crisis, with turnover losses estimated at $ 324 billion in 2021 and about $ 372 billion in 2020. Also, compared to 2019, most airlines have reduced transportation capacity and operational networks by about 40% in 2021.

Let's hope that in 2022, aviation will keep the upward trend recorded in 2021 and the decrease compared to 2019 will be somewhere around 25% -30%. According to experts in the field, aviation is likely to return to 2019 figures in about 3 years, but provided that all travel restrictions are removed and all forms of uncertainty and pressure from the authorities disappear.

According to ICAO, in 2022, international passenger traffic will remain reduced by 43% to 48% compared to 2019, while the use of domestic routes will reach a level between -14 and -19% compared to the pre-Covid period.