Sydney Airport handled 92,000 passengers in April, a 97.5% reduction from 3.68 million in the prior corresponding period, the airport's monthly traffic report published today showed. Domestic passengers were down 97.9%, at 49,000, with international passengers collapsing 96.9% to 43,000.Read More »The airport expected the passenger downturn to persist until government travel restrictions, put in place to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, were eased.
The International Air Transport Association's (IATA) 31-member airline CEO board of governors has developed five key principles for the eventual resumption of flights as the threat of the coronavirus pandemic subsides. The principles, published on Tuesday evening (Asia time), said aviation would be putting safety and security first, would respond flexibly as the COVID-19 crisis and science evolved and operate to global standards that are harmonized and mutually recognized by governments. It noted once again that the industry was a key driver of the economic recovery and declared its airline members would meet its environmental targets.
Taiwan’s flag carrier, China Airlines, transported 11,310 passengers in April, down 99.2% from 1.35 million 12 months ago. The airline's monthly traffic statistics showed load factor fell 52.3 percentage points to 27.5% and demand, measured by revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), declined 98.6%.
South Korea had 1.35 million air travellers in April, down 87% from 10.1 million in the same month a year earlier, according Korea Civil Aviation Association's (KCA) Air Portal data and reported by the Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday. It was the lowest monthly total since January 1997, when 3.7 million passengers travelled in the month.
Low-cost carrier (LCC), Jetstar Japan, said on Monday it planned to operate two domestic routes – Tokyo Narita to Sapporo New Chitose and Tokyo Narita to Fukuoka – from June 1 to June 14. The new schedule represented a reduction from the five domestic routes the LCC, a joint venture between Century Tokyo Leasing Corporation, Japan Airlines (JAL), Mitsubishi Corporation and Qantas, has in operation.
Singapore-based LCC, Jetstar Asia, has extended the suspension of scheduled services until June 30, it announced on Monday, due to ongoing border restrictions across the region. The LCC, jointly owned by Singapore-based Westbrook Investments and Qantas, said it would continue to operate a temporary network of flights from Singapore to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Manila that only were available to citizens and permanent residents returning home or those with prior written approval for travel.
