World’s 10 Largest Airlines in 2026

In 2026, global airline capacity is entering a phase defined less by recovery and more by consolidation, as the industry transitions from post-pandemic catch-up growth to steadier, demand-led expansion.

In this article, we cover the largest airlines globally and by region. Note that the airlines are ranked using Available Seat Miles (ASMs), flights, and seats, according to data from CIRIUM.

Top 20 Global Airlines by ASMs

Based on Available Seat Miles (ASMs), United Airlines remains the largest airline in the world in 2026, generating 255.8 billion ASMs. Delta Air Lines ranks second with 241.2 billion ASMs, followed closely by American Airlines with 239.2 billion ASMs.

Among airlines outside the United States, China Southern Airlines ranks fourth globally with 151.6 billion ASMs. Southwest Airlines follows with 136.4 billion ASMs, while Ryanair records 132.1 billion ASMs, highlighting the strong capacity offered by large low-cost carriers.

Further down the list, Air China generates 119.6 billion ASMs, while Emirates produces 118.0 billion ASMs despite operating fewer than 100,000 flights due to its long-haul network.

Rank	Airlines	ASMs
1	United Airlines	255,839,771,476
2	Delta Air Lines	241,178,804,562
3	American Airlines	239,224,404,349
4	China Southern Airlines	151,647,897,105
5	Southwest Airlines	136,403,295,169
6	Ryanair	132,098,758,446
7	Air China	119,572,338,240
8	Emirates	117,969,628,670
9	China Eastern Airlines	116,252,648,326
10	Turkish Airlines	107,780,486,365
11	IndiGo	100,155,849,413
12	Alaska Airlines	86,939,545,524
13	Qatar Airways	84,080,465,579
14	Air Canada	67,421,442,909
15	British Airways	64,476,711,637
16	Lufthansa	64,438,894,018
17	Cathay Pacific	63,383,558,853
18	Singapore Airlines	62,986,238,688
19	JetBlue	59,342,746,161
20	Air France	58,235,552,338

Top 20 Global Airlines by Seats

When measured by seats offered, American Airlines leads globally with more than 200.6 million seats in 2026. Delta Air Lines follows with 196.6 million seats, while United Airlines ranks third with 174.3 million seats.

Low-cost carriers feature prominently in this metric due to high aircraft utilization and dense seating configurations. Southwest Airlines provides 171.3 million seats, while Ryanair offers more than 167.4 million seats globally.

Among Asian carriers, China Southern Airlines records 150.2 million seats, followed by IndiGo with 145.2 million seats.

Rank	Airlines	Seats
1	American Airlines	200,634,494
2	Delta Air Lines	196,586,627
3	United Airlines	174,347,053
4	Southwest Airlines	171,273,204
5	China Southern Airlines	150,241,001
6	Ryanair	167,418,021
7	IndiGo	145,221,325
8	China Eastern Airlines	124,977,975
9	Air China	111,560,880
10	Wizz Air	83,475,703
11	Turkish Airlines	79,837,206
12	SkyWest Airlines	62,769,907
13	Alaska Airlines	62,264,728
14	LATAM Airlines Brasil	55,964,528
15	Lufthansa	54,793,587
16	Hainan Airlines	54,021,874
17	EasyJet	52,605,615
18	Sichuan Airlines	48,413,550
19	Xiamen Airlines	47,292,436
20	Gol	46,840,358

Top 20 Global Airlines by Flights

In terms of total flights operated, Delta Air Lines leads globally with 1,174,865 flights in 2026. American Airlines follows closely with 1,172,147 flights, while Southwest Airlines ranks third with more than 1.06 million flights.

United Airlines records over 1.01 million flights, while regional operator SkyWest Airlines ranks fifth globally with 939,199 flights.

Among non-US carriers, Ryanair operates 872,699 flights, followed by China Southern Airlines, IndiGo, and China Eastern Airlines.

Rank	Airlines	Flights
1	Delta Air Lines	1,174,865
2	American Airlines	1,172,147
3	Southwest Airlines	1,067,078
4	United Airlines	1,018,031
5	SkyWest Airlines	939,199
6	Ryanair	872,699
7	China Southern Airlines	849,232
8	IndiGo	785,299
9	China Eastern Airlines	757,425
10	Air China	605,133
11	Turkish Airlines	412,509
12	Republic Airline	397,040
13	Alaska Airlines	370,331
14	Wizz Air	360,544
15	Envoy Air	359,358
16	LATAM Airlines Brasil	305,153
17	Hainan Airlines	300,096
18	JetBlue	294,387
19	Lufthansa	290,887
20	EasyJet	290,148

Top 10 Airlines in North America

North America remains the largest aviation market globally by ASM concentration. United, Delta, and American collectively exceed 736 billion ASMs.

Southwest Airlines ranks fourth regionally with 136.4 billion ASMs and 171.3 million seats. Alaska Airlines follows with 86.9 billion ASMs.

Air Canada leads the Canadian market at 67.4 billion ASMs, while JetBlue records 59.3 billion ASMs.

Rank	Airlines	ASMs	Flights	Seats
1	United Airlines	255,839,771,476	1,018,031	174,347,053
2	Delta Air Lines	241,178,804,562	1,174,865	196,586,627
3	American Airlines	239,224,404,349	1,172,147	200,634,494
4	Southwest Airlines	136,403,295,169	1,067,078	171,273,204
5	Alaska Airlines	86,939,545,524	370,331	62,264,728
6	Air Canada	67,421,442,909	188,196	34,833,988
7	JetBlue	59,342,746,161	294,387	46,693,209
8	Volaris	35,155,045,779	191,286	38,155,493
9	Frontier Airlines	30,816,415,362	160,179	33,944,046
10	WestJet	30,762,782,822	137,629	22,592,832

Top 10 Airlines in Europe

Ryanair leads Europe in 2026 with 132 billion ASMs, ahead of Turkish Airlines at 107.8 billion ASMs and over 872,000 flights.

British Airways (64.5 billion ASMs), Lufthansa (64.4 billion ASMs), and Air France (58.2 billion ASMs) maintain similar capacity levels, reflecting the competitive balance among Europe’s major network carriers.

Low-cost operators continue to account for substantial capacity. Wizz Air generates 73.4 billion ASMs, while EasyJet generates 46.3 billion ASMs.

Rank	Airlines	ASMs	Flights	Seats
1	Ryanair	132,098,758,446	872,699	167,418,021
2	Turkish Airlines	107,780,486,365	412,509	79,837,206
3	Wizz Air	73,420,525,914	360,544	83,475,703
4	British Airways	64,476,711,637	215,839	41,722,607
5	Lufthansa	64,438,894,018	290,887	54,793,587
6	Air France	58,235,552,338	182,384	33,012,903
7	EasyJet	46,300,255,923	290,148	52,605,615
8	KLM	40,175,923,578	118,334	25,020,643
9	Jet2	36,890,636,017	128,287	25,609,431
10	Aeroflot	32,929,957,879	130,145	23,066,364

Top 10 Airlines in Asia-Pacific

China Southern Airlines leads the region with 151.6 billion ASMs, followed by Air China (119.6 billion) and China Eastern (116.3 billion).

IndiGo ranks fourth regionally at 100.2 billion ASMs and operates 785,299 flights, one of the highest totals outside North America.

Further down the ranking are Cathay Pacific (63.4 billion ASMs) and Singapore Airlines (63.0 billion), among others.

Rank	Airlines	ASMs	Flights	Seats
1	China Southern Airlines	151,647,897,105	849,232	150,241,001
2	Air China	119,572,338,240	605,133	111,560,880
3	China Eastern Airlines	116,252,648,326	757,425	124,977,975
4	IndiGo	100,155,849,413	785,299	145,221,325
5	Cathay Pacific	63,383,558,853	112,489	33,685,617
6	Singapore Airlines	62,986,238,688	105,448	27,758,965
7	Hainan Airlines	54,513,275,570	300,096	54,021,874
8	Air India	47,341,705,582	241,071	42,177,506
9	Sichuan Airlines	46,921,501,300	285,250	48,413,550
10	ANA	45,152,497,675	165,038	43,600,306

Top 10 Airlines in the Middle East

Emirates leads the Middle East with 118.0 billion ASMs. Qatar Airways follows with 84.1 billion ASMs, operating 122,933 flights.

Etihad Airways ranks third at 41.4 billion ASMs, ahead of Saudia (38.2 billion).

Rank	Airlines	ASMs	Flights	Seats
1	Emirates	117,969,628,670	99,729	39,329,489
2	Qatar Airways	84,080,465,579	122,933	32,432,083
3	Etihad Airways	41,351,248,794	72,642	16,481,110
4	Saudia	38,202,908,862	170,073	34,497,840
5	Flydubai	18,934,014,908	92,161	15,792,823
6	Air Arabia	14,532,251,923	63,017	11,228,286
7	Flynas	9,943,258,771	80,744	13,768,171
8	El Al	9,566,977,443	18,453	3,681,298
9	Oman Air	8,997,984,619	29,557	6,113,634
10	Kuwait Airways	8,105,260,176	23,584	4,845,582

Top 10 Airlines in South America

LATAM Airlines remains Latin America’s largest airline group. LATAM Airlines Brasil leads the region with 50.7 billion ASMs and 55.9 million seats.

It is followed by Gol (33.1 billion ASMs) and Azul (27.7 billion ASMs).

Avianca records 24.4 billion ASMs, while LATAM Airlines, LATAM Airlines Peru, and Aerolineas Argentinas rank higher in terms of regional capacity.

Rank	Airlines	ASMs	Flights	Seats
1	LATAM Airlines Brasil	50,659,839,934	305,153	55,964,528
2	Gol	33,100,315,029	259,958	46,840,358
3	Azul	27,692,213,930	278,788	38,976,594
4	Avianca	24,385,462,980	171,588	31,193,794
5	LATAM Airlines	17,895,884,913	70,319	14,416,213
6	LATAM Airlines Peru	15,045,165,061	103,324	17,210,944
7	Aerolineas Argentinas	14,415,595,120	107,879	15,317,068
8	Copa Airlines	9,091,623,390	33,858	5,476,630
9	Flybondi	5,589,728,487	37,205	7,031,745
10	LATAM Airlines Colombia	5,195,105,842	73,781	12,908,288

Top 10 Airlines in Africa

Ethiopian Airlines remains Africa’s largest carrier with 38.5 billion ASMs and 23.5 million seats across 138,815 flights.

It is followed by EgyptAir (14.6 billion ASMs) and Royal Air Maroc (13.1 billion ASMs).

Rank	Airlines	ASMs	Flights	Seats
1	Ethiopian Airlines	38,507,864,865	138,815	23,511,726
2	EgyptAir	14,586,540,871	58,900	10,319,410
3	Royal Air Maroc	13,090,313,931	50,832	8,464,161
4	Air Algerie	7,912,793,827	70,100	8,539,076
5	Safair	7,398,320,748	67,135	12,595,827
6	Kenya Airways	5,968,926,514	35,008	4,567,807
7	Air Cairo	4,289,346,532	27,055	3,816,472
8	South African Airways	3,963,103,701	26,121	4,320,955
9	Airlink	3,831,880,396	88,176	6,535,098
10	Air Mauritius	2,753,535,592	11,098	1,632,438

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Source: CIRIUM Diio