In 2024, air travel recovery from the Coronavirus pandemic will be completed, the Association of Asia-Pacific Airlines (AAPA) director-general Subhas Menon has said.
According to him, the industry significantly recovered in 2022 and 2023 after being profoundly affected by the COVID-related restrictions, VisaGuide.World reports.
Besides, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasts that airlines will earn a total of $25.7 billion in profits in the following year as a result of a record $964 billion in revenue.
The same expects that all areas will reach pre-pandemic passenger levels by the end of this year, except for the Asia-Pacific, where the entire recovery is expected in nearly 2024.
According to the chief financial officer at gateway services provider Sats, Manfred Seah, the global passenger travel recovery is encouraging, in spite of the continuing macroeconomic uncertainties as well as the current geopolitical situation.
Bertrand Saillet, managing director for travel management company FCM Travel Asia, said that the increasing demand has pushed up airfares in Asia, as reported by the Star.
At the same time, IATA’s director for policy and economics, Andrew Matters, said that the International Monetary Fund’s projections for world gross domestic product increase of three per cent in the coming year and robust labor markets with unemployment rates in several countries at or near record lows.
I think it’s very clear that there’s pent-up demand, people want to travel. Strong labor markets mean that not only do people want to fly, they have also got the means to fly.
IATA’s projections are dependent on the recovery in the China market. According to AAPA, as of September this year, China flight traffic was just 54 per cent of 2019 levels. However, excluding China, Asia-Pacific volumes had reached a total of 87 percent of pre-pandemic levels.
Menon expressed his hopes that China will increase significantly in 2024 and therefore Asia-Pacific will recover completely, with some markets even surpassing 2019 levels.
China’s recovery is subdued but overall travel to China will grow strongly and Chinese airlines will also partake in this revival.
Previously, ICAO’s report revealed that air transport seat capacity, as well as passenger totals worldwide, have reached an estimated 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels. The same revealed that passenger revenue stood at nearly 72 per cent of its pre-pandemic levels.
The number of air passengers carried for a period from January until August of this year increased by an estimated 55 per cent compared to the same period in 2021.