The SATA Group airlines, SATA Air Açores and Azores Airlines, transported 541,818 passengers in July and August 2022, 100,886 more passengers than in the same period in 2019, the last summer in which the aviation sector recorded a performance considered “normal” before the pandemic outbreak.
This growth, equivalent to a 22.9% increase in total passengers carried, is spread across both companies. SATA Air Açores carried 39,089 more passengers (+19.1%) and Azores Airlines 61,797 more passengers (+26.1%).
Although summer is not yet officially over, July and August are considered the peak IATA summer months, when demand intensifies, and therefore deemed the most critical months of the year.
In 2022, the months of July and August took on a particularly prominent role in the industry. First, given that they were of comparable intensity to what was usual at the peak of the IATA season in pre-pandemic years, particularly the year 2019, which has served as a reference for the analysis of the industry’s recovery in the post-pandemic period. Second, the context was even more challenging given the industry constraints deriving from the lack of human resources and congestion at airports and airspace. Thus, this period was a test of resilience for airline operations.
In this context, even with the strong growth in passengers, thanks to a considerable effort by all those involved, the SATA Group’s airlines efficiently provided air connections to several destinations.
Upon this assessment, the SATA Group acknowledges, and thanks, its partners for their invaluable contribution to boosting mobility and tourism in the summer, which is essential to the airlines’ and the archipelago of the Azores’ recovery.