News
IATA figures encouraging for Asia-Pacific carriers
July 3rd 2020
Airlines in the Asia-Pacific have posted the "least worst outcome" in terms of passenger demand during May, with the hope of better to come in the period ahead, figures from International Air Transport Association (IATA) showed. Read More »
In IATA’s latest traffic statistics, Asia-Pacific carriers posted an 82.7% decline in demand, or revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), in May, compared with the same month in 2019. The May figure was an improvement from an 88.5% drop in RPKs in April.
The monthly report noted the smaller reduction in May reflected tentative signs of recovery in some domestic markets that have started to reopen.
China had been registering demand improvement since mid-February, which IATA said provided some guidance for the possible path of recovery in the rest of the industry.
However, the recent flight cancellations into and out of Beijing, due to a fresh outbreak of the coronavirus in the city, highlighted the fragility of the recovery when the disease was still present around the world.
The domestic China market posted a 49.9% drop in RPKs in May, which was better than the 64.6% reduction recorded in April.
“May was not quite as terrible as April. That’s about the best thing that can be said," IATA director general and CEO, Alexandre de Juniac, said in a statement. "As predicted, the first improvements in passenger demand are occurring in domestic markets.
"We appear to be in the very early stages of a recovery in air travel. But the situation is fragile."
Overall, demand fell 91.3% in May, compared with the 94% fall recorded in April. Passenger load factor was 50.7% for the month, an improvement from 36.6% in April.
While there were encouraging signs in some domestic markets, de Juniac cautioned this week that international traffic "remained virtually stopped" in May – international RPKs fell 98.3% in the month – as borders were largely still closed.
"We are only at the very beginning of a long and difficult recovery," he said. "And there is tremendous uncertainty about the impact a resurgence of new COVID-19 cases in key markets could have."
In other IATA news, the airline lobby group said there was a slight pickup in the cargo market in May.
The Asia-Pacific posted a 24.6% fall in cargo demand, measured by cargo tonne kilometres (CTK), compared with May last year, an improvement from the 31% drop in CTKs in April.
Seasonally adjusted freight volumes for Asia-Pacific airlines "rebounded slightly in May and have now reached 75% of their pre-COVID-19 crisis levels", IATA said. "Shipments of personal protective equipment (PPE) are helping support airlines in the region."
