Asian air cargo slides steeply in November

AAPA international passenger traffic continued to slide in November, while international air cargo volumes registered another steep fall.

The number of international passengers carried by AAPA member airlines fell by 9.8%, to 10.9 million in November.

In RPK terms, AAPA international passenger traffic declined by 8.5% and the average international passenger load factor for the month deteriorated by 4.6 percentage points, to 72.0%, as a 2.7% reduction in seat capacity failed to match the reduction in demand.

Air cargo demand again fell sharply in November, with AAPA international FTKs posting a steep 15.5% decline compared to the same month last year. Even with an 8.9% reduction in cargo capacity, the average international cargo load factor for the month fell by almost five percentage points to 64.3%.

Commenting on the results, Mr. Andrew Herdman, AAPA Director General said, “For the first eleven months of 2008, AAPA international passenger traffic declined by a marginal 0.3% in RPK terms, whilst AAPA international freight traffic registered a 4.3% decline, in FTK terms, for the same period. However, the dramatic slowdown in global economic activity in the second half of the year is now reflected in sharply weaker demand for air travel and cargo shipments.”

Mr. Herdman added, “The recent plunge in oil prices provides a measure of relief, but market conditions are expected to remain extremely difficult moving into 2009, forcing airlines to adopt additional cost-saving measures, including capacity cutbacks and deferral of planned capital expenditures.”<Korea Shipping Gazette>