Global demand for air travel rose 4.6% in May, slowing from a strong start to the year, with attacks in major cities across the world and the fragile global economy affecting travel demand, IATA said. Capacity measured in available seat kilometers rose 5.5%, with load factor dropping 0.7 percentage points to 78.7%, IATA said in its monthly traffic update. “The shocks of Istanbul and the economic fallout of the Brexit vote make it difficult to see an early uptick”, added IATA director general, Tony Tyler, Reuters reported. The airport association ACI Europe said Britain’s vote to leave the European Union was not expected to impact overall European air traffic levels this summer, but could knock demand for air transport later this year.
