SIA extends flight cancellations to June amid COVID-19 travel restrictions

SINGAPORE: Singapore Airlines (SIA) announced on Friday (Apr 24) that it has extended its flight cancellations to June amid global travel restrictions due to COVID-19. 

SIA initially said at the end of March that it would make a 96 per cent cut in SIA’s and SilkAir’s combined passenger capacity until the end of April.

In an updated notice on its website, the national carrier said that SIA and SilkAir will "continue to adjust our services in response to the COVID-19 outbreak". 

READ: COVID-19: Singapore Airlines slashes 96% of capacity, grounds most planes

Customers whose flights were cancelled will retain the full value of the unused portion of their tickets as flight credits, said the notice. They will also be awarded bonus flight credits when rebooking. 

Out of SIA Group's fleet of approximately 200 aircraft, only about 10 were in operation to serve a limited passenger network. 

Under the reduced schedule, SIA will fly to just 15 cities, including London, Los Angeles and Seoul. All flights are subject to regulatory approvals, said the airline. 

Commentary: Bitter truths for Singapore Airlines about this aviation industry crash

The company's low-cost unit, Scoot, had also suspended 98 per cent of its network, compared to their original schedules to end April 2020. 

SIA group’s carriers posted a 60.4 per cent decline in passenger carriage in March as overall travel demand was "severely impacted" by travel restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. 

SIA's passenger carriage dropped by 57.2 per cent compared to a year before, against a 37.8 per cent cut in capacity. 

SilkAir's passenger carriage dropped by 71.1 per cent against a 58.5 per cent cut in capacity, while Scoot's passenger carriage decreased 68.3 per cent against a contraction in capacity of 61 per cent. 

READ: SIA Group reports 60% decline in passenger carriage as demand 'severely impacted' by COVID-19 travel restrictions

SIA Group had said that in the fourth quarter of the financial year 2019-2020, it "confronted the greatest challenge in its history due to the global COVID-19 outbreak, which had an unprecedented impact on its business".

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