Changi Airport’s March 2023 passenger traffic crosses 80% of pre-pandemic levels
Janice Lim
ABOUT 4.63 million passengers passed through Changi Airport in March 2023, which is about 82 per cent of its pre-Covid traffic in March 2019, said Changi Airport Group (CAG) on Wednesday (May 3).
This marks the first time passenger traffic at one of the world’s busiest airports crossed 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
Aircraft movements, which include landings and takeoffs, totalled 26,000, which is about 81 per cent of March 2019 levels.
For the first quarter of the year, Changi Airport clocked 13 million passenger movements. It also registered 74,000 aircraft movements for the same period. The top five traffic markets for the quarter comprised Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.
CAG said it is seeing strongest growth in key source markets such as North America, Southwest Pacific and Europe.
In addition, passenger flows to and from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan also showed strong recovery with traffic doubling compared to the previous quarter, driven by the progressive resumption of scheduled passenger services. Turning to air cargo movements, airfreight throughput was 152,000 tonnes for March 2023, maintaining what was recorded for the same period last year, said CAG.
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Airfreight movements totalled 417,000 tonnes over the first quarter, which is a decline of 9 per cent year on year.
“Air cargo demand remained soft, especially in the first two months of the year, amid global economic uncertainty and inflationary pressures,” said CAG.
Changi’s top five air cargo markets comprised Australia, China, Hong Kong, India and the US.
SEE ALSO
Lim Ching Kiat, CAG’s executive vice-president for air hub and cargo development, said that passenger numbers crossing 80 per cent of pre-Covid levels for the first time since the onset of the pandemic represents a milestone in the recovery of Changi Airport’s traffic.
“As the world continues to gear up on travel, we look forward to more airlines resuming their services to cater to the growing appetite for travel, as well as bringing in new airlines to connect our passengers with more destinations in the coming months,” he added.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
