SIA Group passenger carriage down 97.7% in November as air travel demand remains 'weak'

SINGAPORE: November saw a 97.7 per cent year-on-year fall in overall passenger carriage for the Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group, with demand for air travel still "weak" amid border controls and travel restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Announcing its November operating results, the SIA group said on Tuesday (Dec 15) that passenger carriage for SIA declined 97.3 per cent year-on-year in November, while passenger carriage for Silkair fell 98.7 per cent year-on-year. 

Budget carrier Scoot saw its passenger carriage fall by 99.1 per cent year-on-year.

READ: SIA Group passenger carriage down 98.1% in October amid 'tepid' demand for air travel

SIA added four cities to its network - Brunei, Fukuoka, New York and Shenzhen - to bring its total to 36 cities. SilkAir added Kathmandu to its list of destinations. 

Cargo capacity and traffic were more than 20 per cent higher in November than in October, with all route regions continuing to record year-on-year increases in cargo load factor.

“Cargo load factor was 22.4 percentage points higher year-on-year as the capacity contraction of 49.8 per cent year-on-year outpaced the 32 per cent decline in cargo traffic (measured in freight tonne-kilometres),” said the SIA Group. 

ADDING CITIES FOR TRANSIT

The air travel bubble between Singapore and Hong Kong has been deferred "beyond December" amid a spike in COVID-19 cases in the Chinese city. An exact start date will be reviewed later this month.

"While the start of the Singapore-Hong Kong air travel bubble has been postponed, there
are reports that similar arrangements could be made with other countries with low COVID-19 infection rates," the group said.

READ: Singapore, Hong Kong to defer air travel bubble launch

Singapore has also continued to add cities from which passengers can transfer, through Singapore, to other destinations, it said, adding that SIA will reinstate flights to San Francisco and Nagoya from December.

The group said it was looking forward to a "gradual recovery" in passenger operations as countries and regions explore ways to safely reopen borders, with the appropriate protocols in place.

DISTRIBUTION OF COVID-19 VACCINES

Developments in the production and distribution of vaccines also support "growing optimism" on the potential recovery of air travel, said the group.

“Amid rapid developments in the testing and production of COVID-19 vaccines globally, SIA has made preparations to meet one of the largest and most important logistical challenges in recent history – the safe and effective distribution of these vaccines around the world,” the group added.

READ: Singapore can be air cargo hub for COVID-19 vaccines: Changi Airport, CAAS

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Monday that the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has approved the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, with the first shipment due to arrive in Singapore by the end of December.

He added that Singapore’s status as an aviation hub means the country plays a “crucial role” in transporting vaccines around the world.