China's 'Big Three' cap off 2020 with lower passenger traffic results

China’s three largest carriers reported year-on-year declines in their full-year traffic results for 2020 as the coronavirus outbreak impacted travel demand, particularly in their international networks. However, a strong domestic recovery for most of the second half of the year helped the ‘Big Three’ — China Southern, China Eastern and Air China — offset any steeper plunge in full-year passenger traffic. In separate traffic results released on 15 January, the three carriers saw full-year passenger numbers drop by around 40% year on year. Overall capacity and traffic, measured in ASKs and RPKs respectively, also saw declines — of between 38 to 52% — compared to full-year results from 2019. Air China carried 68.7m passengers in 2020 across its networks, a 40% decline year on year. Overall RPKs fell 53%, while ASKs across the network decreased 46% year on year. The airline carried 65.8m domestic passengers in 2020, a 29% drop compared to 2019’s numbers. Domestic RPKs fell nearly 30%, with ASKs slipping 19% year on year. Across the three carriers, full-year international traffic numbers recorded steep plunges, due to international travel restrictions imposed to curb the spread — and importation — of the coronavirus. The ‘Big Three’ saw passenger numbers plummet around 87% year on year, with international ASKs falling around 81% and RPKs plunging about 86% compared to 2019. <br/>