Asia-Pacific ​passenger traffic rebounding, but cargo trend worrying: AAPA chief

The head of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) head says that international passenger traffic continues to rebound strongly, but that there are headwinds – especially for the air cargo market. AAPA DG Subhas Menon says high vaccination rates in the Asia-Pacific have unleashed pent-up demand for air travel, which had been held in check by travel restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic. He notes that key travel markets such as India and Indonesia have opened up, somewhat offsetting China’s continued closure amid Beijing’s zero-Covid stance. “In May flights are really chock-a-block – all the flights are so full that it is hard to get a seat,” he says. “Forward bookings indicate that it will be even more than what it was in May in terms of demand. People talk about revenge travel…pent-up demand is very strong. I think this will carry us through.” In addition to leisure travel, there are also signs that business travel is also doing well. AAPA’s April 2022 preliminary international traffic numbers underline Menon’s optimism. During the month, the 40 carriers covered in AAPA’s numbers carried 4.8 million international passengers, up nearly fourfold from April 2021, when the region was mired in travel restrictions. ASKs nearly doubled year on year and RPKs rose four-fold. Load factors during April were 64.9%, up 36.3 percentage points from a year earlier. Still, Menon is concerned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and China’s continued lockdowns will continue feeding inflation, which will reduce the disposable income available for travel. <br/>