Muscat: Middle Eastern carriers saw a 60.8 percent year-on-year decrease in demand, as a direct result of the US-Israel-Iran war, which closed much of the airspace in the region, except in the Sultanate of Oman and the west coast of Saudi Arabia.
Capacity decreased 56.9% year-on-year, and the load factor was 67.8%, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Overall, total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), was up 2.1% compared to March 2025. Total capacity, measured in available seat kilometers (ASK), decreased 1.7% year-on-year.
The load factor was 83.6% (+3.1 ppt compared to March 2025).
International demand fell -0.6% compared to March 2025. Capacity was down -6.2% year-on-year, and the load factor was 84.1%. The overall decline in international traffic was led by a -60.8% fall in traffic by carriers in the Middle East.
“Demand for air travel continued to grow in March despite disruptions in the Middle East. The nearly 61% decline in international traffic by carriers in the Middle East did, however, restrain global growth to 2.1%. Outside of the Middle East demand grew by 8%,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
“Everybody’s watching what’s happening with jet fuel—both supply and pricing. On the supply side, over the next months we could see shortages in parts of the world with high dependence on supplies from the Gulf, especially Asia and Europe. And the extraordinarily high cost of jet fuel is increasingly being reflected in ticket prices. While this has not impacted March traffic or forward bookings to date, it remains to be seen at what point high prices could start to shift passenger behavior. So far, the summer is shaping up to be a normally busy time for travel. That’s positive news, but airline resilience is being tested and stabilizing the supply and price of fuel is crucial. In the meantime, it’s important for regulators to be prepared to grant airlines some flexibility on slots considering the extraordinary circumstances of airspace capacity restrictions and potential fuel rationing,” said Walsh.
According to National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI) data for 2026, even Muscat International Airport saw a decline in international passenger traffic, with arrivals dropping to 728,588 in March 2026, down from 939,921 in February and 1.18 million in January. Total passenger numbers for the first quarter of 2026 decreased by 2.4% to 2.86 million, with flight activity also decreasing to 5,515 flights in March.
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