Passenger Traffic in Latin America and the Caribbean Dropped 2.3% in June: First Monthly Contraction Since 2021
During June 2026, passenger traffic to, from, and within Latin America and the Caribbean totaled 37.3 million passengers, recording a 2.3% year-over-year decline. This downturn represented a net loss of 893,000 passengers compared to the same period last year, marking the region’s first monthly year-over-year contraction since 2021, according to an analysis released by the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA).
Operational performance reflected a decouple between available capacity and actual market demand. Airline operational capacity, measured in Available Seat-Kilometers (ASK), grew by 0.9% year-over-year. However, overall traffic demand, measured in Revenue Passenger-Kilometers (RPK), contracted by 1.0%.
As a direct result of this supply-demand imbalance, the average load factor stood at 81.6%, representing a 1.6 percentage point decrease compared to June 2025.
Breakdown by Segment and Key Market Performance
The weakening demand impacted all regional air transport operational sectors:
- Domestic Traffic: Recorded a 2.0% decline compared to June of the previous year.
- Intra-regional International: Showed the steepest relative drop of the month, falling by 3.0%.
- Extra-regional International: Experienced a 2.7% contraction.
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Performance Across Regional Aviation Powerhouses
Latin America’s three largest markets—Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia—all closed the month in negative territory. Combined, these three nations account for nearly 65% of the region’s total traffic and carried 517,000 fewer passengers than in June 2025.
An analysis of country-specific variations highlights the following results:
- Mexico: Recorded the region’s largest absolute reduction, losing 293,000 passengers (-3.0%), an impact felt primarily in the international market.
- Argentina: Posted the sharpest decline in percentage terms, carrying 238,000 fewer passengers (-10.1%), driven by a steep 17.0% drop in domestic traffic.
- Panama: Offset part of the regional losses by posting a 10.9% growth, adding 187,000 additional passengers.
- Dominican Republic: Maintained positive momentum with a 6.1% increase, contributing 99,000 passengers to the regional flow.
First Half Review and Industry Outlook
Despite the contraction experienced in June, the cumulative balance for air transport in Latin America and the Caribbean remained positive for the first half of the year. Between January and June 2026, the region transported 242.8 million passengers, representing a 3.4% increase compared to the same period in 2025 and adding 8 million passengers to the total.
“In June, regional air traffic saw its first year-over-year decline since 2021. While the first half still closed with 8 million additional passengers, there has been a noticeable loss of momentum since April. Under these conditions, any added travel costs could constrain demand recovery and threaten connectivity,” said Peter Cerdá, CEO of the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA).
First-half performance indicators point to a progressive slowdown in operational momentum starting in April. To safeguard connectivity and sustain the recovery trend through the second half of the year, the regional airline industry faces the critical challenge of containing additional costs that could directly impact passenger demand.
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