Latin America and the Caribbean is the first region in the world to surpass pre-pandemic air traffic levels in 2023

The volume of air passengers in Latin America and the Caribbean is expected to reach 708 million by the end of 2023, 3% more than in 2019. It was the region that showed the fastest recovery after the pandemic and the one that first surpasses the 2019 air traffic volume.  Fifty-five percent of the region’s airports have already exceeded 2019 air traffic. The highlights were Mexico and Colombia, with growth of 17% and 5% respectively. It is estimated that 2024 in Latin America and the Caribbean will follow this positive trend, with 759 million passengers expected, equivalent to 10.5% more than in 2019. The information was presented during the first day of the ACI-LAC Annual Assembly & Exhibition, which will be held until today (7) in Miami, USA.

With regard to global air traffic, the forecast is that by the end of the year the volume of passengers will reach 8.6 billion, which represents 94.2% of 2019 levels. It is also expected that 2024 will be a milestone in the recovery of global traffic, with 9.4 billion passengers, finally surpassing 2019 levels. This result should be driven by domestic traffic, which is expected to surpass 2019 next year. International traffic is expected to surpass 2019 levels by 2025.

Towards the Net Zero target in 2050

In 2023, ACI reached the milestone of more than 500 airports around the world committing to actively reducing their direct CO2 emissions under the ACI Airport Carbon Accreditation program. In Latin America and the Caribbean, 72 airports in 20 countries and territories are currently certified. ACI Airport Carbon Accreditation is the only global carbon management certification program approved for airports and plays a key role in driving the airport industry towards its commitment to zero carbon emissions by 2050. The program independently assesses and recognizes airports’ efforts to manage and reduce their carbon emissions through 6 levels of certification.

Airport management and technology are highlights of the first day of the conference

The opening of the ACI-LAC Annual Assembly Conference & Exhibition 2023 was attended by Ezequiel Barrenechea, Chairman of the ACI-LAC Board of Directors, Luis Felipe de Oliveira, Director General of ACI World, Rafael Echevarne, Director General of ACI-LAC, and Christopher Barks, ICAO Regional Director for North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

In the event’s opening panel, CEOs from airports in the region discussed how the consequences of the pandemic have impacted the aviation business environment. All were unanimous in expressing satisfaction with the results for 2023 and the progress made in overcoming the challenges. Mónika Infante, CEO of Aerodom in the Dominican Republic, highlighted the strengthening and particularities of sustainability actions.

“We at the airports are the conductors of the orchestra. We need to manage many partners so that the whole process moves forward in balance. To make progress in the transition, we need to involve the companies that work with us and talk to regulators to encourage investments that will help reduce impacts,” he added.

The other panels held throughout the day discussed topics such as the evolution of airport concessions and public-private partnerships, solutions for increasing non-airport revenues, as well as new technologies applied to decarbonizing the industry and advanced air mobility.