Emirates tops global rankings for international capacity in August ahead of Ryanair

Emirates leads global international capacity with over 31bn ASKs in August 2026.
Ryanair ranks second with 25.7bn, followed by United, Turkish and Qatar.
Emirates holds the top Middle East seat volume with 3.02m seats.
The airline cancelled just 0.16pc of services with over 85pc punctuality.
Dubai International Airport maintains its position as the busiest global hub.

Emirates has led the world in international available seat kilometres in August with more than 31bn ASKs, according to OAG data, extending its lead over Ryanair’s 25.7bn ASKs. The Dubai carrier continues to restore capacity after regional disruptions and has resumed daily Dubai-Kuwait flights operated by Airbus A350 aircraft. The airline secured the top spot despite an overall capacity drop in the broader Middle East market caused by ongoing regional tensions.

United Airlines ranks third with 22.8bn ASKs, followed by Turkish Airlines with 21.5bn and Qatar Airways with 21bn. When measuring scheduled seat volume within the Middle East, Emirates still leads with 3.02m seats, ahead of Saudia’s 2.97m and Qatar Airways’ 2.68m. The capacity milestone matches other high-performance metrics, with Emirates cancelling just 0.16pc of scheduled services and ranking first in the Middle East for punctuality with over 85pc of flights running exactly on time.

Dubai International Airport grew its international seat capacity to maintain its position as the busiest hub for global travel. The ASK metric multiplies total seats available for sale by the total distance flown, highlighting the scale of long-haul hub networks. Emirates’ performance comes amid a broader regional capacity drop, with the carrier’s network restoration proceeding through selective route resumptions including the Kuwait and Bahrain services operated by A350 aircraft.

Under this metiric airline capacity is measured using ASKs. This metric multiplies the total seats available for sale by the total distance flown. It highlights the massive scale of long-haul hub networks.

Emirates: 31bn ASKs
Ryanair: 25.7bn ASKs (Emirates leads by 21pc)
United Airlines: 22.8bn ASKs
Turkish Airlines: 21.5bn ASKs
Qatar Airways: 21bn ASKs

Adnan Kazim shared “Our capacity leadership reflects the strength of the Dubai hub model and the resilience of our network despite regional challenges. The A350 deployment on regional routes supports our capacity restoration while maintaining operational efficiency across the Gulf network.”