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Preliminary figures released by the Association
of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) provide further evidence of a
continuing recovery in demand for air travel.
Collectively, airlines based in the Asia
Pacific region carried a total of 14.9 million international
passengers in January 2010, 8.1% more than in the same month last
year. International passenger traffic, measured in revenue
passenger kilometre (RPK) terms, grew by 7%. With available seat
capacity having been trimmed by 0.7%, the average international
passenger load factor reached 78.6%, 5.6 percentage points higher
than in the same month last year.
The rebound in international air cargo demand
seen in the fourth quarter of last year maintained its momentum in
January, with Asia Pacific based airlines registering 33.1%
year-on-year growth in freight tonne kilometre terms (FTK)
compared to the market lows reached in the same month last year.
The average international air cargo load factor for Asia Pacific
carriers was 12.6 percentage points higher, at 66.4% for the
month.
Commenting on the results, Mr. Andrew Herdman,
AAPA Director General said, “After two extremely difficult years,
the initial signs for 2010 are quite encouraging. Nevertheless, it
is still a very challenging operating environment. Air travel
demand is growing again, in line with the broader recovery, led by
dynamic economies in the Asia Pacific region. Short haul leisure
traffic led the trend, followed by long haul routes and, more
recently, evidence of renewed demand for business travel as
companies seek to rebuild business and connect with new customers.
Current passenger volumes are already getting back to the
pre-recession levels recorded in early 2008, with prospects for
further growth ahead.”
“In the international air cargo market, the
strong momentum of recent months has been maintained in line with
a general recovery in international trade, although it is worth
noting that air cargo volumes are still 7% lower than they were
two years ago, in January 2008,” Mr. Herdman added.b“Despite
welcome signs of an ongoing recovery in demand, airlines are still
facing an uphill battle to restore profitability in the face of
stubbornly high oil prices, whilst low ticket prices reflect
competitive forces and under-utilised capacity across the industry
as new aircraft deliveries outpaced demand growth.”
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Hua Hin,
AAPA,
January 2010
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