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First-Class Air Travel on Wane

The number of people flying business or first class globally fell sharply in March, according to the International Air Transport Association.

An IATA report released Tuesday said premium traffic fell 3.9% in March compared with the same period last year, the largest monthly drop since 2003. The IATA said weak March business travel was due in part to the Easter holiday falling during the month, as people are more likely to travel for leisure than business during a holiday. During previous years when this has occurred, premium travel has fallen 2% to 3%, the IATA said.

Montreal-based IATA, which represents about 240 full-service airlines, collects traffic data from its members.

The weakest major markets for premium travel were inter-Europe and Europe-Far East, likely driven in Europe by passengers' ongoing switch to coach on the mainly short-haul flights, while the relatively weak Europe-Far East premium traffic is "a little surprising" given buoyant trade between the regions, the IATA said.

But travel across the North Atlantic remained relatively strong, and travel across the Pacific was the strongest of the larger premium markets. These routes "have been held up by outbound U.S. export business travel and, to some degree, by first-class passengers originating outside the U.S. taking advantage of the weak dollar," the IATA said.

In the first week of June, IATA will issue an updated global airline-industry financial forecast and outlook for 2008 and beyond, revising its March outlook based on the recent spike in fuel prices and passenger and cargo-traffic trends.

The Wall Street Journal