Coronavirus: More passengers for Changi and SIA, but much lower than in 2019

The opening of the Singapore-China green lane and the restarting of transit flights helped to boost passenger movements at Changi Airport last month, but only barely. The number - 48,200 - is still 99.2% below what it was in the same period last year, data released by Changi Airport Group (CAG) showed Monday. The Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group has reported a similar plunge in passenger numbers, with the 17,700 passengers it carried last month a 99.5% drop from last year. CAG told The Straits Times that it has handled more than 10,000 transit passenger movements since the gradual reopening to transit flights on June 2, "though these still remain at very low levels compared to pre-Covid-19". Currently, only flights by the SIA Group - comprising SIA, SilkAir and Scoot - from selected cities are allowed to transit at Changi. CAG said it is handling about 300 scheduled passenger flights per week this month, compared with around 170 per week in April, the first month after the ban on short-term visitors to Singapore kicked in. SIA said that the pandemic continues to have a severe impact on international air travel. "Progress towards a global lifting of border controls and travel restrictions, which could facilitate or result in the easier movement of travellers between countries, is slower than earlier expected," said SIA.<br/>