OAG: Airplanes one seat larger in 2012, analysis shows

The average number of seats available on the 2.5 million flights departing this month was 126, compared to 125 a year ago, as carriers upgrade to larger aircraft

Source AFP - RELAXNEWS (English International Version)

Jan. 15, 2012

2 min read

The average size of aircraft has increased by one seat over the past year, research released this week has shown.

In its monthly analysis of aviation trends, airline analyst OAG Aviation said that the average number of seats available on the 2.5 million flights departing this month was 126, compared to 125 a year ago, as carriers upgrade to larger aircraft.

The analysis accounts for the rise in capacity (the number of seats available to fly) this month of nearly three percent compared to January 2011, while the total number of flights taking off has increased by a more modest 1.86 percent.

Unsurprisingly, much of this growth is coming from the Asia-Pacific region, OAG said, with the number of flights to and from Asia rising by seven percent compared to this time last year.

Most stunning was the growth of Beijing Airport, which overtook London Heathrow as the world's second-busiest airport in 2011 to post a throughput of 8.4 million seats this month, four percent more than last year (the world's busiest airport, Atlanta, saw a 1.5 percent fall in the number of seats offered).

Nine percent more planes will be flying to and from the Middle East this month, OAG said, six percent more to and from Central and South America and four percent more to and from North America.

The number of flights to and from Europe stayed all but flat, the analysis suggested, while the number of flights to and from Africa has fallen sharply due to political instability, down 6.5 percent compared to January 2011.