»»Iata Forecasts Airlines Will Return to Profit in 2010
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents more than 240 major airlines, announced airlines are on track to post a profit of US$1.9 billion profit in 2010.
It is a dramatic change on March predictions, when IATA said that airlines would lose up to US$1.8-billion in 2010.
The recovery, quicker than what could have been anticipated, was being driven by growth in the Asia-Pacific region and in North America.
Global premium traffic on long haul flights, the most lucrative for airlines, increased by 20 per cent in the first three months of the year.
However in Europe airlines still expecting losses throughout 2010 — strikes as well as days of disruption caused by the volcanic ash crisis playing an important role in the poor performance of the European air traffic.
IATA predicts that global passenger demand to grow by seven per cent in 2010, with average fares expected to rise by 4.5 per cent.
