Source: ALTA
In June 2025, air traffic in Latin America and the Caribbean reached 38.3 million passengers, marking a 3.4% year-over-year increase, equivalent to 1.3 million additional travelers. This represents an acceleration of 0.8 percentage points compared to the growth recorded in May. The region’s overall performance was largely driven by LAC-based airlines, which, according to IATA’s latest report, posted the highest traffic growth globally in June (+7.9%)[1].
Trend holds: Brazil, Argentina and Peru continue to drive growth
Brazil recorded its fourth consecutive month of all-time high domestic traffic. In June, 8.22 million passengers flew within the country, an increase of 11.2% compared to June 2024. Air travel remains the service category with the highest year-to-date deflation (–28% vs. 2024)[2]. Domestic connectivity continues to expand: in June 2025, 43 domestic routes were operated that did not exist in June 2024, including Viracopos–Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte–Rio de Janeiro (RRJ), and Aracaju–Salvador[3]. On the international segment, Brazil saw a 12.8% year-over-year increase in passenger traffic, boosted by a 35% rise in international tourist arrivals by air[4].
Argentina recorded the highest year-over-year growth rate of the region in June, with domestic traffic up 12% and international traffic up 14%. Total passenger numbers reached a new all-time high, surpassing the previous record set in June 2019 by 3%. Key contributors included international routes such as Argentina–Brazil (+28%) and Argentina–Colombia (+36%), as well as strong growth on domestic routes like Buenos Aires–Iguazú (+40%) and Buenos Aires–Neuquén (+37%).
Peru posted one of the strongest performances in the region. In June, domestic traffic reached a record high for the month, with 1.3 million passengers (+5.2%), while international traffic grew 8.3%, supported by solid results in key markets such as Colombia (+22%), Brazil (+13%) and Mexico (+7.6%). This growth was accompanied by a year-over-year decline in air transport service prices, both domestic (–1.2%) and international (–2.1%)[5].
Mexico sees slight decline driven by weaker international performance
Mexico handled 9.8 million passengers in June, a slight 0.4% decrease compared to June 2024, amid a dip in consumer confidence, which fell 1.1 points from May[6]. Domestic traffic edged up by 0.2%, while international traffic, which accounts for 47% of the total, declined by 1%. The U.S. accounted for 73% of Mexico’s international passenger traffic and posted a 2.1% drop, largely driven by a 3.6% decrease in passengers carried by U.S. carriers. Growth in traffic with Canada (+12.4%) helped offset some of that decline. Total capacity offered by Mexican airlines (ASK) remained relatively stable (+1.5%), but a greater share was allocated to international routes in June 2025 (45% vs. 43% in June 2024)[7].
Mixed performance in Colombia and Chile: domestic decline in Colombia, partial recovery in Chile
In Colombia, domestic air traffic fell by 4.7% in June, marking five consecutive months of decline and a 2.1% drop over the first half of the year. Of the country’s ten busiest domestic routes, only two (Medellín–Cartagena and Medellín–Santa Marta) avoided year-over-year declines. On the other hand, international traffic rose by 9.2%, driven mainly by increased demand on routes to neighboring countries such as Ecuador (+30%), Brazil (+27%), and Peru (+22%). In Chile, domestic traffic grew 4.2% in June, rebounding after two consecutive months of contraction. International traffic also posted a modest 2.5% increase.
“Air traffic in Latin America and the Caribbean showed sustained momentum in the first half of 2025, with 237 million passengers and a 3.6% year-over-year increase. Over 90% of that net growth came from markets within the region, reaffirming aviation’s increasingly active role in regional integration. During this same period, LAC-based airlines operated 11.2% more international flights between countries in the region compared to the first half of 2024”, said Peter Cerdá, ALTA’s CEO.
Dominican Republic Leads the Caribbean, Panama Drives Central America
Passenger traffic to and from the Caribbean grew 0.9% year-on-year in June, showing mixed signals across the region’s main markets. In the Dominican Republic, the largest market in the subregion and the eighth largest in LAC, passenger volumes rose 1.2%, despite declines in its two largest source markets: the United States (–1.1%) and Canada (–9%), both posting six consecutive months of contraction. Growth in traffic with Colombia (+10%), Panama (+9%), and Peru (+31%) partially offset these declines, resulting in a net gain compared to June 2024.
In Central America, air traffic rose 4.2% year-on-year in June, driven mainly by Panama, which posted a 6% increase supported by strong gains in passenger flows with Argentina (+38%), Colombia (+14%), and Brazil (+12%). In contrast, Costa Rica recorded marginal growth of 0.9% amid weaker tourism activity. International tourist arrivals by air fell 4.5% in June, including a 4.9% drop in visitors from the United States, who account for nearly 75% of total arrivals[8].
Key indicators
- Capacity, measured in available seat kilometers (ASK), grew by 4.8%.
- Demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), increased by 5.7%.
- The average load factor reached 85.1%.
- From January to June, total passenger traffic in LAC reached 237 million, a 3.6% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
| June | YTD | |||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | % Growth | 2025 | 2024 | % Growth | |||
| Passengers | 38,320,772 | 37,053,343 | 3.4% | 237,061,670 | 228,839,739 | 3.6% | ||
| Domestic | 21,379,849 | 20,563,658 | 4% | 128,249,465 | 123,234,638 | 4.1% | ||
| Intraregional international | 4,432,188 | 4,044,687 | 9.6% | 28,907,366 | 26,243,307 | 10.2% | ||
| Extra regional international | 12,508,735 | 12,444,999 | 0.5% | 79,904,839 | 79,361,794 | 0.7% | ||
| RPK (millions) | 81,148 | 76,793 | 5.7% | 510,976 | 482,508 | 5.9% | ||
| Domestic | 20,147 | 18,847 | 6.9% | 122,854 | 113,986 | 7.8% | ||
| Intraregional international | 9,097 | 8,233 | 10.5% | 56,380 | 50,962 | 10.6% | ||
| Extra regional international | 51,903 | 49,714 | 4.4% | 299,122 | 292,455 | 2.3% | ||
| ASK (millions) | 95,327 | 90,951 | 4.8% | 608,063 | 580,808 | 4.7% | ||
| Domestic | 23,649 | 22,839 | 3.5% | 145,094 | 138,528 | 4.7% | ||
| Intraregional international | 11,801 | 10,575 | 11.6% | 72,609 | 64,576 | 12.4% | ||
| Extra regional international | 59,876 | 57,536 | 4.1% | 390,360 | 377,704 | 3.4% | ||
| Passenger Load Factor | 85.1% | 84.4% | 0.7 pts | 84.0% | 83.1% | 0.9 pts | ||
| Domestic | 85.2% | 82.5% | 2.7 pts | 84.7% | 82.3% | 2.4 pts | ||
| Intraregional international | 77.1% | 77.9% | -0.8 pts | 77.6% | 78.9% | -1.3 pts | ||
| Extra regional international | 86.7% | 86.4% | 0.3 pts | 85.0% | 84.1% | 0.9 pts |
| Source: ALTA analysis based on data from Civil Aviation Authorities and ALTA estimates derived from reports submitted by member airlines. |
Glossary: RPK (Revenue Passenger Kilometers): number of paying passengers transported multiplied by the distance flown | ASK (Available Seat Kilometers): number of seats available for sale multiplied by the distance flown | Load Factor: obtained by dividing RPK by ASK.
Methodological Note
In this document, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is defined as the combined total of South America, Central America, the Caribbean, and Mexico. This definition is applied consistently across all regional and international traffic analyses.
Domestic traffic refers to flights operated within the same country. International traffic is classified into two broad segments:
- Intra-regional international traffic: flights between countries within LAC (e.g., Argentina–Brazil or Mexico–Colombia).
- Extra-regional international traffic: flights between LAC and other regions of the world, such as North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, or Africa.