The CEO of IATA has called on governments to start treating aviation as a partner instead of an easy target for “excessive taxation and onerous regulation”.
Speaking after the publication of IATA’s global passenger traffic results its CEO and director general Tony Tyler (pictured) said aviation must be recognised as an “economic enabler”, and a “key engine of growth and job creation”.
The call comes after IATA results for March showed a slowdown of growth in demand for air travel.
International passenger traffic rose 2.6 per cent in March, a significant slowdown compared to the 5.4 per cent increase in February.
“Rising demand for air travel tapered in March, following months of increasing demand,” said IATA’s CEO and director general Tony Tyler.
“Aviation is crucial for economic expansion and development. But it is up to governments to treat aviation as a partner, not as an easy target for overly excessive taxation and onerous regulation or to have its infrastructure needs neglected.
“When aviation is treated as an economic enabler the industry is able to rise to its full potential as a key engine of growth and job creation,” said Tyler.
Total revenue passenger kilometres increased 3.1 per cent compared to March 2013, the results found. Although this represented a slowdown in comparison to the February year-over-year traffic increase of 5.6 per cent.
IATA represents 240 airlines comprising 84 per cent of global air traffic.
Last week (May 1) IATA renewed its call for all aviation stakeholders to stay focused on “delivering a vision for a sustainable future”.