Dear Colleagues,
As we close out 2025, evolving safety challenges in and around Venezuelan airspace demand our close attention and coordinated industry engagement as our member airlines continue face significant operational challenges, driven by frequent GPS jamming and the absence of an Instrument Landing System (ILS) at CCS.
Even more concerning, GPS interference has intensified within the Maiquetía FIR and is now being reported on flights over the Caribbean outside Venezuelan airspace, including areas near Aruba (AUA) and Curaçao (CUR). Adding to these risks, two near midair collisions involving a U.S. Air Force tanker near Venezuela have made global headlines, highlighting growing safety concerns in the region.
IATA is actively engaging ICAO and the FAA to address these issues and advocate for stronger civil–military coordination, improved surveillance practices, and enhanced information sharing to mitigate systemic risks and prevent future incidents. We will keep you informed as this delicate situation evolves amid rising political tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela. As usual, please find all of IATA’s latest activities across the region below.
From a global perspective, key media came together in Geneva in December for IATA’s Global Media Day, where we shared the latest figures and insights on the past year and what lies ahead in 2026 and beyond.
As part of the end of year meeting, IATA also issued its Global Outlook for Air Transport as well as the corresponding Industry Statistics.
In summary, from a financial perspective, Latin America is expected to post a net profit of USD 2.5 billion in 2025 before easing slightly to USD 2.0 billion in 2026, while North America remains the industry’s profit leader with USD 10.8 billion in 2025 and a modest increase to USD 11.3 billion in 2026. Regarding traffic results, Passenger traffic in Latin America is projected to grow by 7.1% in 2025 and 6.6% in 2026, supported by similar capacity increases, while North America shows near-flat growth of just 0.2% in 2025 and 1.5% in 2026, reflecting a mature market with limited expansion.
In membership news, we are pleased to welcome Arajet as IATA’s latest member airline based in the Americas.
Lastly, thank you for your continued support throughout 2025. We wish you and your families a joyful holiday season and all the best for the new year.
We look forward to working together in 2026 to further strengthen air transport’s competitiveness and connectivity across the Americas.
Peter Cerdá
IATA’s Regional Vice President, The Americas
Americas Focus: Archive
2025: 01-2025 (pdf) 02-2025 (pdf) 03-2025 (pdf) 04-2025 (pdf) 05-2025 (pdf) 06-2025 (pdf) 07-2025 (pdf) 07-2025 Spanish (pdf) 08-2025 (pdf) 08-2025 Spanish (pdf) 09-2025 (pdf) 09-2025 Spanish (pdf) 10-2025 (pdf) 10-2025 Spanish (pdf) 11-2025 (pdf) 11-2025 spanish (pdf)
2024: 01-2024 (pdf) 02-2024 (pdf) 03-2024 (pdf) 04-2024 (pdf) 05-2024 (pdf) 06-2024 (pdf) 07-2024 (pdf) 08-2024 (pdf) 09-2024 (pdf)
2023: 01-2023 (pdf) 02-2023 (pdf) 03-2023 (pdf) 04-2023 (pdf) 05-2023 (pdf) 06-2023 (pdf) 07-2023 (pdf) 08-2023 (pdf)
2022: 01-2022 (pdf) 02-2022 (pdf) 03-22 (pdf) 04-22 (pdf) 05-22 (pdf) 06-22 (pdf)
2021: 01-2021 (pdf) 02-2021 (pdf) 03-2021 (pdf) 04-2021 (pdf) 05-2021 (pdf) 06-2021 (pdf) 07-2021 (pdf)
2020: 01-2020 (pdf) 02-2020 (pdf) 03-2020 (pdf)
2019: Jan 2019 (pdf) Feb 2019 (pdf) May 2019 (pdf) #04 Version (pdf) #05 Version (pdf) #06 Version (pdf)
2018: Jan 2018 (pdf) Feb 2018 (pdf) Mar 2018 (pdf) Apr 2018 (pdf) May 2018 (pdf) Jun 2018 (pdf)
Jul 2018 (pdf) Aug-Sep 2018 (pdf) Oct-Nov 2018 (pdf) Summary 2018 (pdf)
2017: Q4 2017 (pdf) Q3 2017 (pdf) Q2 2017 (pdf) Q1 2017 (pdf)