What Is RPK? Definition & Meaning in Aviation
RPK (revenue passenger kilometres) is a measure of how much passenger traffic an airline carries: paying passengers multiplied by the distance they fly.
In plain language
Dividing RPK by ASK gives the load factor. It is a standard way to compare traffic between airlines and over time.
Example
If 100 paying passengers fly 1,000 km, that is 100,000 RPK.
Why it matters
RPK shows how much passenger traffic an airline actually carries, as opposed to how much it could carry. Combined with ASK it gives the load factor.