Our World
in Data
Oxford Martin School logoUniversity of Oxford logoGlobal Change Data Lab logo

Yesterday

Data update

How quickly has global air travel recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic?

Veronika Samborska

The COVID-19 pandemic was the worst shock the commercial airline industry has ever faced. In 2020, global passenger traffic collapsed almost overnight.

How much has the industry recovered since?

Passenger traffic was back above its pre-pandemic peak by 2024, as you can see in the chart.

The share of available seats filled by paying passengers has also fully recovered, and now sits slightly above its 2019 level.

I recently updated this data, which comes from the International Civil Aviation Organization, compiled and published by Airlines for America.

Explore the interactive version of this chart
Line chart of global air travel passenger traffic in passenger-kilometres from 1950 to 2024 where traffic rises steadily, falls by two-thirds in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, then rebounds to about 5% above its pre-pandemic peak by 2024. Source: International Civil Aviation Organization via Airlines for America (2026). License: CC BY to Our World in Data.