Singapore's air passenger traffic reaches 50.3% of pre-pandemic levels

SINGAPORE: Air passenger traffic in Singapore reached 50.3 per cent of its pre-pandemic level in June, said Changi Airport Group (CAG), amid a return in demand for travel.

Changi Airport handled 2.93 million passenger movements in June, compared with 5.8 million in June 2019, according to Changi Airport's latest operating indicators on Sunday (Jul 31).

Aircraft movements - including both landings and takeoffs - totalled 18,400, or about 58.6 per cent of pre-pandemic levels in the same month in 2019, said CAG.

Airfreight throughput registered 163,000 tonnes for the month, a 1.4 per cent increase year-on-year.

"We are encouraged by the steady increase in passenger traffic as it is a sign that we are getting back on the trajectory of growth towards pre-pandemic levels," said Lim Ching Kiat, managing director for Air Hub Development at CAG.

"The reopening of Terminal 4 and partial opening of Terminal 2 will give us the capacity to support our airline partners’ efforts in restarting services and launching new routes, which are critical for us to capture post-pandemic demand for air travel."

STRONG RECOVERY OF PASSENGER TRAFFIC

Total passenger traffic from April to June this year was 7.33 million - 43.6 per cent of pre-COVID-19 levels, and 14 times compared to the same period last year.

Aircraft movements clocked 50,500 in the same period, reaching 53.5 per cent of pre-COVID-19 levels, and a 96.8 per cent year-on-year increase.

For the second quarter of the year, airfreight movements decreased slightly year-on-year by 1.4 per cent to 469,000 tonnes.

According to CAG, this was due to supply chain disruptions arising from COVID-19 lockdowns in China, as well as geopolitical tensions impacting air cargo traffic, particularly during April and May.

The top five air cargo markets for the quarter were China, Hong Kong, Australia, United States of America and Japan.