Global airline capacity for November 2025 has demonstrated robust growth, with a 4.2% increase compared to November 2024, equating to 19.2 million more available seats, according to the latest data from OAG. This strong year-over-year (YoY) performance underscores the continued recovery and expansion of the aviation market worldwide.
November 2025 global capacity is projected at 481.9 million seats, a seasonal dip of 47 million seats compared to the previous month, positioning November as the second-lowest month for global capacity after February.
North American Carriers Dominate Global Frequency
American Airlines cemented its position as the world’s largest airline by frequency this month, operating a total of 183,594 flights. This represents a significant increase of 9,017 flights compared to November 2024—the largest volume increase among the Top 20 global carriers.
The U.S. continues its market dominance, with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines securing the top four spots in the worldwide frequency rankings.
Conversely, some global carriers recorded a decline in flight frequency compared to last year. Deutsche Lufthansa saw the most notable drop, down 8.5%, while Air Canada and Japan Airlines both experienced a modest 1.3% reduction.
Domestic Markets Show Mixed Capacity Shifts
The USA remains the world’s largest domestic market, offering 86.5 million seats in November 2025, a lead of 20.9 million seats over second-place China (65.6 million seats).
However, China recorded the biggest capacity increase among the Top 10 domestic markets, adding 2.3 million seats year-over-year. Other markets showing particularly strong domestic capacity growth rates include India (+8.9%) and Mexico (+7.9%).
Domestic capacity in several key markets saw declines: Spain was down 7.1%, Indonesia decreased by 4.6%, and Japan saw a 1.4% reduction compared to November 2024.
Regional Growth Fueled by Asia and Europe
At the regional level, the two areas driving the largest volume growth in capacity compared to last year are North East Asia (up 4.3 million seats) and Western Europe (up 3.4 million seats).
In terms of growth rate, Southern Africa continues to lead among the IATA regions, recording the strongest capacity increase at an impressive 11.9%.
The Caribbean region was the outlier this month, being the only IATA region to show a decline in capacity, with a 2.4% reduction on last year.
