22 January 2026

Global air cargo capacity is up ~4% in early 2026, driven by continued growth on Asia–Middle East–Europe corridor

Global air cargo capacity is up ~4% so far in 2026. Hereby a few key drivers of recent changes in the capacity landscape:

▶️ Widebody passenger capacity is overall driver, growing ~6%.
▶️ Airline freighters are growing more modestly (+3% overall), with clear regional differences.
▶️ Strongest growth on Asia-Middle East-Europe corridor, with growth rates between ~5 and ~15% depending on the tradelane.