IATA: Premium travel and Asia-Pacific continue to drive global aviation growth
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has released its 2025 World Air Transport Statistics (WATS) report, highlighting continued growth in global air travel despite ongoing economic and geopolitical challenges. Based on data from more than 250 airlines worldwide, the report provides a comprehensive overview of passenger demand, fleet trends, route performance and market developments across the aviation industry.
One of the report's key findings is the continued expansion of international premium travel. In 2025, 109.7 million passengers travelled in business or first class, representing a 4.5% year-on-year increase and accounting for 5.5% of all international travellers. Latin America recorded the strongest growth in premium traffic, while Europe remained the world's largest premium travel market.
The report also confirms the dominance of the Asia-Pacific region, with nine of the world's ten busiest airport pairs located in Asia. The Jeju–Seoul Gimpo route in South Korea remained the world's busiest, carrying 13.3 million passengers during 2025. The only non-Asian route in the global top ten was the connection between Jeddah and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.
The United States retained its position as the world's largest aviation market, handling 890.1 million passengers in 2025. China ranked second with 776.1 million passengers, followed by the United Kingdom. Among the top ten markets, Japan recorded the fastest annual growth, reflecting the continued recovery and expansion of international and domestic air travel.
According to IATA, the findings demonstrate that demand for air travel remains strong, particularly in premium segments and high-growth Asian markets. The report also underscores the importance of continued investment in modern aircraft, airport infrastructure and digital technologies to support future passenger growth and improve operational efficiency across the global aviation sector.
Image source: iata.org
