Air Travel Plunges 63% In First Half

 Registers only 11.3 Million Passengers

 

23 September 2020

Air passenger traffic volume in the country plunged by 63 percent from January to June this year, government data showed.

According to the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), the country’s passenger volume stood at 11.3 million in the first semester, compared with 30.5 million passengers flown in the same period last year.

The government regulator attributes the fall to covid19 pandemic which resulted to closures of airports and restrictions on travel between the months of March and June this year.

CAB Executive Director Atty. Carmelo L. Arcilla disclosed that majority of the recorded passengers flew between January and March 15. Less than 500,000 passengers flew between March 16 and June 30.

The domestic market recorded 5.99 million passengers, 61 percent down from 15.2 million passengers flown a year ago.

International traffic stood at 5.3 million, 65 percent lower than last year’s 15.3 million passengers. Of the total, 2.8 million passengers flew via the domestic carriers and 2.5 million through the foreign carriers.

CAB said some of the passengers were stranded and repatriates OWFs and LSI who returns to the country and their place of residence in the countryside after the suspension of commercial flights from March up to June.

Office of Civil Defense registers more than 300,000 of affected airline passengers that was carried by government sponsored airlifts, both made by military planes and chartered flights by local airlines.

CEB Leads Domestic Traffic, PAL Leads International Services

Cebu Pacific (CEB) and its subsidiary Cebgo leads the domestic carrier having flown 3.9 million passengers in the six-month period, down 63 percent from last year’s 10.6 million passengers. Of the total, 3 million passengers took domestic flights and 811,902 for international flights.

Meanwhile, flag carrier Philippines Airlines (PAL) and subsidiary PAL Express, leads in the international market with 3.1 million passengers served in the first six months, of which 1.5 million flew international and 1.6 million took domestic flights.

Low-cost carrier Philippine AirAsia flew 1.6 million passengers in the first half of the year, of which 1.22 million passengers took domestic flights and 370,484 international flights.