Finnair has reported a sharp rise in passenger numbers for March, despite disruption to its Middle East operations and wider geopolitical uncertainty.
The airline said it carried just over 1.01 million passengers during the month, an increase of 10.8% compared with the same period last year, when industrial action had constrained capacity.
Growth was strongest on Asian and European routes, with more modest gains on domestic services. However, traffic to North America declined slightly, while passenger numbers to the Middle East fell sharply after flights to Doha and Dubai were suspended at the end of February due to security concerns in the region.
Capacity and demand trends
Overall capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASK), rose by 2.3%, with stronger growth in Asia and Europe. The increase was driven in part by additional frequencies to key destinations including Osaka, Tokyo and Hong Kong.
By contrast, capacity on North Atlantic routes fell due to fewer flights to Dallas and Los Angeles, while Middle East capacity declined significantly. Including leased aircraft operations, total capacity rose by 3.9%.
Demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), increased by 15.7%, supported in part by reduced market capacity linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Load factors and revenues
Finnair said its passenger load factor rose by 9.5 percentage points to 82.4%, indicating stronger seat occupancy across most regions.
Revenue per available seat kilometre (RASK) increased by 21.4%, reflecting improved load factors and stronger yields.
Cargo and operations
Cargo volumes declined during the month, with total tonnes carried down by 4.8%, largely due to reduced activity in the Middle East. Revenue cargo tonne kilometres also fell by 4.1%.
Operational performance improved, with 89.5% of flights arriving on schedule, up from 85.8% a year earlier.
Rising fuel costs
The airline warned that jet fuel prices had risen significantly following the escalation of tensions in the Middle East. At the end of March, Finnair had hedged 82% of its fuel needs for the second quarter and an average of 69% for the remainder of 2026.
The carrier is due to publish its April traffic figures on 8 May.
| Finnair Traffic Performance March 2026 | ||||
| Month | Change % | YTD | Change % | |
| Total traffic | ||||
| Passengers 1,000 | 1,015.5 | 10.8 | 2,832.2 | 7.3 |
| Available seat kilometres mill | 3,205.2 | 2.3 | 9,454.2 | 3.6 |
| Revenue passenger kilometres mill | 2,640.7 | 15.7 | 7,378.5 | 9.6 |
| Passenger load factor % | 82.4 | 9.5p | 78.0 | 4.3p |
| Available tonne kilometres mill | 473.8 | 2.5 | 1,412.5 | 4.9 |
| Revenue tonne kilometres mill | 308.3 | 10.4 | 867.4 | 8.4 |
| Revenue per available seat kilometre €c | 9.1 | 21.4 | 8.2 | 8.2 |
| Available seat kilometres incl. wet lease out mill | 3,403.1 | 3.9 | 10,071.1 | 3.9 |
| Asia | ||||
| Passengers 1,000 | 161.4 | 38.8 | 426.8 | 18.6 |
| Available seat kilometres mill | 1,324.9 | 10.5 | 3,789.7 | 9.0 |
| Revenue passenger kilometres mill | 1,242.7 | 37.5 | 3,288.1 | 18.2 |
| Passenger load factor % | 93.8 | 18.4p | 86.8 | 6.8p |
| Europe | ||||
| Passengers 1,000 | 609.8 | 13.3 | 1,657.3 | 8.4 |
| Available seat kilometres mill | 1,324.0 | 9.6 | 3,667.7 | 3.9 |
| Revenue passenger kilometres mill | 1,000.8 | 15.0 | 2,690.5 | 10.0 |
| Passenger load factor % | 75.6 | 3.5p | 73.4 | 4.1p |
| North Atlantic | ||||
| Passengers 1,000 | 33.1 | – 2.2 | 95.0 | 4.3 |
| Available seat kilometres mill | 352.4 | – 8.8 | 1,082.3 | 4.7 |
| Revenue passenger kilometres mill | 258.4 | – 3.0 | 749.6 | 5.0 |
| Passenger load factor % | 73.3 | 4.4p | 69.3 | 0.2p |
| Middle East | ||||
| Passengers 1,000 | 0.2 | – 99.1 | 58.4 | – 37.2 |
| Available seat kilometres mill | 1.5 | – 98.9 | 307.6 | – 38.6 |
| Revenue passenger kilometres mill | 1.0 | – 99.1 | 260.8 | – 37.4 |
| Passenger load factor % | 65.4 | – 11.7p | 84.8 | 1.6p |
| Domestic | ||||
| Passengers 1,000 | 210.9 | 3.8 | 594.6 | 4.6 |
| Available seat kilometres mill | 202.2 | 1.7 | 606.9 | 4.0 |
| Revenue passenger kilometres mill | 137.9 | 3.5 | 389.4 | 4.7 |
| Passenger load factor % | 68.2 | 1.2p | 64.2 | 0.4p |
