Tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Tonne-kilometers of air freight was 278.50 million million ton-km in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2023)
278.50 million million ton-km
Change on year
down 11.5%
World rank
49th
of 180 countries
All-time high
436.20 million million ton-km
in 2018
All-time low
500,000 million ton-km
in 1978
Years of data
54
1970–2023
Tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka, 1970–2023
Source: International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in million ton-km.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 278.50 million million ton-km for tonne-kilometers of air freight in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 11.5% on the previous year and down 27.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka peaked at 436.20 million million ton-km in 2018 and was at its lowest, 500,000 million ton-km, in 1978.
Sri Lanka ranks 49th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | million ton-km | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.80 million million ton-km | — |
| 1971 | 1.90 million million ton-km | +5.6% |
| 1972 | 3.50 million million ton-km | +84.2% |
| 1973 | 2.90 million million ton-km | -17.1% |
| 1974 | 2.60 million million ton-km | -10.3% |
| 1975 | 2.00 million million ton-km | -23.1% |
| 1976 | 2.40 million million ton-km | +20.0% |
| 1977 | 2.20 million million ton-km | -8.3% |
| 1978 | 500,000 million ton-km | -77.3% |
| 1979 | 1.80 million million ton-km | +260.0% |
| 1980 | 9.70 million million ton-km | +438.9% |
| 1981 | 26.80 million million ton-km | +176.3% |
| 1982 | 39.80 million million ton-km | +48.5% |
| 1983 | 44.60 million million ton-km | +12.1% |
| 1984 | 59.60 million million ton-km | +33.6% |
| 1985 | 67.60 million million ton-km | +13.4% |
| 1986 | 54.70 million million ton-km | -19.1% |
| 1987 | 49.10 million million ton-km | -10.2% |
| 1988 | 61.70 million million ton-km | +25.7% |
| 1989 | 75.40 million million ton-km | +22.2% |
| 1990 | 93.40 million million ton-km | +23.9% |
| 1991 | 100.70 million million ton-km | +7.8% |
| 1992 | 109.80 million million ton-km | +9.0% |
| 1993 | 104.40 million million ton-km | -4.9% |
| 1994 | 109.90 million million ton-km | +5.3% |
| 1995 | 156.00 million million ton-km | +41.9% |
| 1996 | 158.60 million million ton-km | +1.7% |
| 1997 | 173.90 million million ton-km | +9.6% |
| 1998 | 156.50 million million ton-km | -10.0% |
| 1999 | 179.20 million million ton-km | +14.5% |
| 2000 | 255.71 million million ton-km | +42.7% |
| 2001 | 217.57 million million ton-km | -14.9% |
| 2002 | 203.13 million million ton-km | -6.6% |
| 2003 | 238.01 million million ton-km | +17.2% |
| 2004 | 312.63 million million ton-km | +31.4% |
| 2005 | 310.36 million million ton-km | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 325.41 million million ton-km | +4.8% |
| 2007 | 343.64 million million ton-km | +5.6% |
| 2008 | 331.46 million million ton-km | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 279.00 million million ton-km | -15.8% |
| 2010 | 339.05 million million ton-km | +21.5% |
| 2011 | 364.50 million million ton-km | +7.5% |
| 2012 | 405.42 million million ton-km | +11.2% |
| 2013 | 385.12 million million ton-km | -5.0% |
| 2014 | 384.71 million million ton-km | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 381.63 million million ton-km | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 403.08 million million ton-km | +5.6% |
| 2017 | 398.47 million million ton-km | -1.1% |
| 2018 | 436.20 million million ton-km | +9.5% |
| 2019 | 394.05 million million ton-km | -9.7% |
| 2020 | 226.48 million million ton-km | -42.5% |
| 2021 | 412.48 million million ton-km | +82.1% |
| 2022 | 314.75 million million ton-km | -23.7% |
| 2023 | 278.50 million million ton-km | -11.5% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 278.50 million million ton-km is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 25.07 million million ton-km, 11.1× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 278.50 million million ton-km is above the median for South Asia, which is 64.15 million million ton-km, 4.3× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | +438.9% | 1.80 million million ton-km | 9.70 million million ton-km |
| 1979 | +260.0% | 500,000 million ton-km | 1.80 million million ton-km |
| 1981 | +176.3% | 9.70 million million ton-km | 26.80 million million ton-km |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.16 million million ton-km | 500,000 million ton-km | 3.50 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 1980s | 48.90 million million ton-km | 9.70 million million ton-km | 75.40 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 1990s | 134.24 million million ton-km | 93.40 million million ton-km | 179.20 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 2000s | 281.69 million million ton-km | 203.13 million million ton-km | 343.64 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 2010s | 389.22 million million ton-km | 339.05 million million ton-km | 436.20 million million ton-km | 10 |
| 2020s | 308.05 million million ton-km | 226.48 million million ton-km | 412.48 million million ton-km | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More reference data data for Sri Lanka
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1608 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.316 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1784 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.539 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1604 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.9713 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka?
- Tonne-kilometers of air freight in Sri Lanka was 278.50 million million ton-km in 2023, according to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tonne-kilometers of air freight recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 436.20 million million ton-km in 2018.
- What is the lowest tonne-kilometers of air freight recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 500,000 million ton-km in 1978.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for tonne-kilometers of air freight?
- Sri Lanka ranks 49th out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is tonne-kilometers of air freight rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Tonne-kilometers of air freight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Air freight is the volume of freight, express, and diplomatic bags carried on each flight stage (operation of an aircraft from takeoff to its next landing), measured in metric tonnes times kilometers traveled.