The latest trends in Europe's "typical flight": flying further, higher, and with more seats!
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Civil Aviation Resources Network, August 5, 2025: Air travel in Europe is undergoing a quiet transformation. Eurocontrol, the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation, recently released its latest 2024 statistics, revealing how the so-called "typical flight" in Europe has changed over the past year and what trends are emerging.
In 2024, the average flight distance was 1,157 kilometers, an increase of 17 kilometers from 2023, continuing a six-year trend of increasing flight distance. This is primarily due to the decline in regional and domestic flights over the past two decades, driven by factors including the higher cost per available seat kilometer (CASK) for short-haul flights compared to medium- and long-haul flights, the rise of alternative modes of transportation such as high-speed rail and road, and policy and behavioral shifts aimed at reducing aviation's environmental impact.
In 2024, the most common aircraft types in Eurocontrol airspace were narrow-body airliners-the Boeing 737-800 and Airbus A320, with maximum take-off weights (MTOW) of 79 tons and 78 tons, respectively. Average maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) has continued to recover since declining during the "pandemic years" (2020-2021), when the proportion of very short-haul flights under 500 kilometers increased. Since 2018, average MTOW has increased by 4 tons, including a 1.4-ton increase after 2023, reaching 90.4 tons in 2024.
The aircraft mix shifts slightly between 2023 and 2024, with an increase in the proportion of narrow-body and wide-body passenger aircraft and a decrease in the proportion of regional jets in 2024. This shift is not surprising, as larger and newer aircraft help airlines improve cost efficiency.
Jets fly more efficiently at high altitudes. However, in congested airspace, aircraft operators don't always have optimal flight levels. During the "pandemic years," average flight levels rose significantly due to reduced traffic and the removal of many traffic management measures. In 2022, the average flight level drops to FL350 (35,000 feet), still approximately 500 feet higher than in 2018, and remains stable thereafter.
In terms of seat capacity, the average number of seats per flight in 2024 will reach 183, up from 173 in 2018. This increase coincides with an increase in maximum takeoff weight, the introduction of new aircraft with greater seating flexibility, and a decrease in regional jet flights.