ALTA launches Colombia Aviation Insight 2023: a statistical compendium showing the performance of air transport in the country

Bogota, January 10, 2024 – "Air transport in Colombia has been growing steadily and still has enormous potential; performance figures prove it. However, there are still significant challenges that impact the cost of flying," said José Ricardo Botelho, ALTA's Executive Director and CEO, who today launched Colombia Aviation Insight 2023.

It is a statistical compendium with key indicators of passenger demand and aviation capacity in Colombia, such as the main airports and city pairs in the country, in terms of volume and growth.

According to other data, the document reports that, in 2023, the passenger traffic on domestic routes was 29.7 million, almost three times the 10.7 million carried in 2009. Meanwhile, international traffic grew from 5.6 million to 19.8 million passengers in the same period.

According to Colombia Aviation Insight, December was the month with the most international passengers carried in 2023 in Colombia, reaching over 1.8 million, and July was the one with the highest load factor achieved during the year, at 83.2%.

The report, which contains ALTA's analysis based on data by authorities and Amadeus Travel Intelligence Platform, shows that the passenger traffic on domestic flights represents 60% of the total passengers carried in the country.

On this point, the CEO comments that "we are aware that this is a country with a mountainous geography that makes aviation a basic need for safe and efficient transport for the entire population. Air transport enables family reunion, business and millions of jobs in the country. Colombia is the third largest air market in Latin America, after Mexico and Brazil, and we are confident that under the right public policies it may continue to grow and generate economic and social benefits for Colombian society."

Botelho emphasizes that this study represents a valuable tool available for who wants to learn about Colombia's economy and aviation sector, but also for the country's decision-makers, who may find statistical analysis contrasted with governmental information to implement the right measures to benefit the private sector and the country.

Colombia continues to take heights

Colombia Aviation Insight 2023 comes along with a video of the "Juntos Tomamos Altura" campaign where ALTA summarizes the impact of the aviation industry in Colombia, whose growth has contributed to the development of tourism, business and foreign investment.

This is the first of a video series that will show the role of aviation in the daily dynamics of the country. It is available on YouTube, LinkedIn and Instagram platforms and soon in airports across the country: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THH3LuFpN98

"It is important to highlight that Colombia's air market showed an outstanding recovery during the pandemic. This was mainly because of the reduction of VAT from 19% to 5% for air tickets, a measure in force until December 31, 2022, which strongly encouraged the possibility of travel for many Colombians. Measures that promote the growth of air transport result in boosting a broad value chain that generates investments, public revenues, jobs and wellbeing in the country. ALTA is an organization capable of generating technical analysis and input, so that decisions such as these may be reviewed in a more perspective. Tools such as Colombia Aviation Insight 2023 are such an example. The VAT reduction is just one of the measures we advocate for, as we are convinced of its great impact on Colombians' wellbeing", ALTA's CEO stresses.