Skift Take

Airlines saw capacity and passenger traffic recover to pre-Covid levels and opened up their checkbooks to sign deals for their long-term future with new aircraft.

Ajay Awtaney

Global aviation had a dream run in 2023. Everything that went wrong during the pandemic seemed to reverse – and then some.

It wasn't all smooth. Airlines went bankrupt (Go First), mergers got announced (Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines), alliances got blocked (JetBlue and American Airlines), turnaround plans got implemented (Air India) and legendary CEOs moved on (Ahmed Al Baker). 

But the industry has a strong set-up heading into 2024. Here's where things stand.  

More Capacity, Passengers and Profits

While passengers complained about high airfares, they continued to travel as if there was no tomorrow. Airlines responded by adding capacity as quickly as possible. 

According to an OAG report in December, global seat capacity for 2023 was just 3.7% behind 2019.  In the first quarter of 2024, OAG