While considering the increasing fuel costs and exceptionally weak traveler demand, airline losses' estimate was increased this year by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to $11 billion.

Prior to this, a loss of $9 billion was predicted for the present year by the association, the airline industry's largest trade organization; however, it thinks that worldwide airline revenue may plummet by $80 billion, or 15 percent, from 2008, to $455 billion.

As per the IATA director Giovanni Bisignani, "The bottom line of this crisis, with combined 2008/9 losses at $27.8 billion, is larger than the impact of 9/11. The global economic storm may be abating, but airlines have not yet found safe harbor [and] the crisis continues."

Apart from this, the association also forecast a fall of 4% in the passenger demand this year; while for cargo demands, it expects a fall of 14% from 2008 levels.

While it predicts the Europe's carriers will lose $3.8 billion this year, more than double the group's previous forecast; it expects North American airlines to post $2.6 billion in losses, also more than double its previous forecast.

Furthermore, a forecast for 2010 was also released by the IATA, in which it estimated that airlines worldwide will slash collective losses to $3.8 billion, on limited revival of growth in passenger and cargo volumes.