The growth rate for premium air travel fell significantly in March from the previous month, says the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which attributes it to the Japan tsunami and earthquakes as well as unrest in the Arab world.
The number of business or first class passengers in international markets was 2.9 percent higher year-on-year in March, compared with a 7.8 percent year-on-year rise in February and 9.1 percent in the fourth quarter.
Economy traffic dropped to 1.1 percent in March, from 3.4 percent in February and 5.9 percent in the fourth quarter.
"The decline of economy travel over the past five months is more of a concern than the recent fall in premium passenger numbers," IATA said in a statement.
Added fuel prices have hampered airline recovery.
“The adverse impact of this on price-sensitive economy travel is apparent," said IATA
Business travel was still strong in many markets, IATA said, and estimated that without the news events of Japan and the Middle East, premium travel would have grown by 5 percent or more.
Noting premium travel usually grows in line with world trade, IATA predicted premium travel would reach 5-6 percent growth in the second half of the year.
By David Wilkening
