Scheduled air traffic is rising, but holiday flights suffer decline
The number of passengers passing through UK airports has exceeded the pre-recession peak, according to a new market update by market researcher Key Note, but the numbers travelling on holiday flights has fallen sharply.
Scheduled traffic rose 23% between 2010 and 2014, but charter traffic was down 22%.
The rise in scheduled traffic boosted the overall financial performance of major UK airlines, according to the report, with the combined revenue growing 33.7%.
It said airlines’ fortunes had also been boosted by falling oil prices and the recent reductions in air passenger duty for long-haul passengers as well as for children.
"These developments have come alongside what is a generally improving economic climate in the UK, with rising disposable incomes, low inflation and falling unemployment witnessed, which in turn has allowed for a greater number of consumers spending higher sums of money on holidays and travel in general, giving a welcome boost to airlines and the overall market concerned with air transportation," said the Airlines report.
Key Note forecasts that passengers will grow by a further 15.3% between 2015 and 2019, ‘bringing a considerable boost to the revenue of UK-based airlines’.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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