The airline industry is in recovery from the worst recession in its history. It must be so. The data from individual airlines and from the industry associations shows very strong improvements in traffic and yields (see last month's Aviation Strategy). Global traffic levels have returned to the peak levels seen in 2008. Premium cabins - the bedrock of long-haul profitability - have, according to IATA, seen year-on-year percentage growth in passenger numbers (at least on long-haul services) sufficient to suggest that the demand is really recovering from the halt in the world economy that appeared after the collapse of Lehman Bros at the tail end of 2008.
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