Global aviation faces tighter passenger margins as cargo demand climbs 6% in May

Airport Council International forecasts 10.2 billion passengers worldwide this year, while IATA cut its traffic growth outlook to 2.1 % due to capacity limits, longer routes from Middle‑East conflicts and delays in aircraft deliveries. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration awarded Air Space Intelligence an $875 million, 12‑year contract for its SMART software, which will use AI to predict air‑traffic conflicts before take‑off. A GAO review of airline mergers found short‑term fare increases of 1‑8 % when competition on a route disappears. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency issued an emergency airworthiness directive requiring ultrasonic inspections of the wing‑mid spars on 16 Airbus A380s, grounding five Emirates jets and limiting the remaining fleet to 25 flight cycles.

Separately, the International Air Transport Association reported a 6 % year‑on‑year rise in global air‑cargo demand in May, outpacing the 1.9 % increase in capacity. Africa led growth with a 13.3 % jump, followed by North America (10.5 %) and the Asia‑Pacific (8 %). The Asia‑North America corridor saw the strongest cargo surge at 19.9 %. Fuel prices fell 16.3 % from April but remain nearly double year‑ago levels, keeping operating costs high.