Airlines carried approximately 3.8 billion passengers on scheduled services throughout 2016, an increase of 7 percent over the prior year, according to recently-released industry performance statistics from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Out of all areas surveyed by IATA, the Asia-Pacific region carried the largest number of passengers throughout the past year, accounting for approximately 35 percent of market share for an estimated total of 1.3 billion passengers. The European market came in second, accounting for 26 percent of market share for a total of approximately 992.4 million passengers.
North America represented 24 percent of market share during 2016, a 3 percent increase compared to 2015, totaling approximately 911.5 million passengers. The top six was rounded out by Latin America at 7 percent of market share, the Middle East at 5 percent of market share, and Africa at 2 percent of market share.
Southwest Airlines was ranked number one for total scheduled passengers, carrying approximately 151.8 million travelers throughout the year. American Airlines came in second with an estimated 144.2 million passengers while Delta Airlines (143.3 million), China Southern Airlines (114.5 million) and Ryanair (112 million) rounded out the top five.
The top five airlines by total freight tonnes carried on scheduled services were FedEx Express, UPS, Emirates Airline, Qatar Airways, and Cathay Pacific Airways.
The report also found that U.S. citizens were the world’s most-prevalent travelers, with approximately 810 million passengers using U.S. passports.