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(31/10/23)
 According to preliminary figures from the
Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), member carriers in
the region recorded an 111%
year-on-year increase in the number of international passengers
carried to a combined total of 23.7 million in September 2023.

That
brought demand to 79% of the corresponding month in 2019, a
marked improvement compared to 52.9% in January.

Demand as
measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) increased by 90.9%
year-on-year, whilst available seat capacity expanded by 86.1%,
leading to a 2-percentage point increase in the average
international passenger load factor to 79.7% for the month.

“During the first nine months of the year, Asian
airlines in aggregate carried 194 million international
passengers, 212% more than the same period last year, reflecting
very strong post-pandemic recovery in demand,” said Subhas Menon,
AAPA Director General.

Singapore Airlines B777 at LHR. Picture by Steven Howard of TravelNewsAsia.com

Meanwhile, following 18 consecutive months in
decline since March 2022, the region’s carriers recorded an
upswing in international air cargo demand in September, with a
3.2% year-on-year growth as measured in freight tonne kilometres
(FTK).

Whilst the increase was in part attributable to comparisons
with depressed levels recorded last year, the start of the high
demand season leading to the year-end festive period also
contributed to growth.

International freight load factor fell
by 3.3 percentage points to average 60.6% for the month, after
accounting for an 8.8% year-on-year expansion in offered freight
capacity.

“Air cargo demand
turned positive for the first time in 2023 in September, which
helped to moderate the decline for the year to date, to 6.4%,”
said Mr. Menon. “It
is a welcome relief to have both passenger and cargo demand on a
positive footing although the fall in export orders seen across
major economies still signals challenging market conditions.”

AAPA’s 67th Assembly of Presidents will be held in
Singapore on 9 – 10 November 2023, hosted by Singapore Airlines as
AAPA Chairman for 2023.

The annual assembly is the most important event on
AAPA’s calendar, bringing the chief executives of member airlines
and other senior members of the industry together for a day of
networking, brainstorming on industry issues, and high-level
discussions.

Topics discussed will include safety, fuel and
renewable energy, forward bookings, passenger and cargo traffic,
challenges faced by the industry, recruitment, aircraft, airports
and much more.

“The outlook for
the region’s travel markets is broadly positive going into the
final quarter of this year, with continued expansion in air
passenger demand supported by resilient growth in the Asian
economies,” said Mr. Menon. “Airlines are facing increasing headwinds, marked by
sharply higher fuel costs in recent months. Nevertheless, the
region’s carriers are buoyed by the strong recovery of air travel
in the region and are looking forward to the growth continuing
into 2024.”

See
Videos from Routes World 2023 in Istanbul, Türkiye, including: 

Beijing Daxing Airport (PKX) – Interview with Deputy GM Aviation
Business.