WAT Reveals FEDEX, UPS, Others Performance on Cargo Freight

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has published the 58th edition of the World Air Transport Statistics (WATS), a leading yearbook of the airline industry’s annual performance containing extensive statistical information and analysis.

“Commercial aviation began 100 years ago with a single airplane, a single passenger and a single route. Last year, as recorded in the WATS, the industry carried more than 3 billion passengers and nearly 48 million tonnes of cargo on nearly 100,000 flights per day, while the real price of air travel fell by 7.4%.

“Aviation’s annual contribution exceeds even these impressive figures. Its global economic impact is estimated at $2.4 trillion and it supports 3.4% of global GDP. By value, over a third of goods traded internationally are delivered by air and some 58.1 million jobs are supported by aviation,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s director general and CEO.

On Cargo, globally, cargo experienced weak growth with freight tonne kilometers up only 1.8% compared to 2012.

However, this represents a reversal of the 1.1% shrinkage over 2011.

The top five airlines ranked by total scheduled freight tonnes carried were: Federal Express (7.1 million), UPS Airlines (4.1 million), Emirates (2.1 million), Korean Air (1.4 million), Cathay Pacific Airways (1.3 million).

Snapshot of 2013 industry performance (Passenger): System-wide, airlines carried 3.129 billion passengers on scheduled services, an increase of 5.1% over 2012.