Singapore Changi Airport recorded the highest passenger movement during December 2012. The company registered 4.92 million passenger movements and handled 152,900 tonnes of airfreight during the month. There were 29,000 landings and take-offs during December 2012. Further, on December 22, 2012, Changi registered movement of 180,400 passengers, the highest recorded by the company within a 24-hour period.
In calendar year 2012, the company crossed the 50 million passenger movement mark with a total of 51.2 million passengers, a 10 per cent increase over the previous year. Flight movements grew by 7.6 per cent to reach 324,700 in 2012 while cargo volumes declined by 3.2 per cent to 1.81 million tonnes.
During 2012, there was encouraging improvement in demand for travel to and from Europe. The passenger traffic between Singapore and Europe grew by 7.5 per cent when compared to 2011. Changi also continued to experience strong growth from neighbouring Asia-Pacific regions including South Asia (12.4 per cent growth as compared to 2011), Northeast Asia (9.9 per cent), Southeast Asia (9.7 per cent), and Southwest Pacific (9.4 per cent).
Changi’s busiest routes during 2012 included the routes to and from Jakarta, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Manila. Further, the airport saw a surge in traffic to and from Beijing, Frankfurt, and Guangzhou. Besides increasing demand on these traditional gateway routes, Changi’s connectivity to secondary cities such as Australia’s Gold Coast, Bhutan’s Paro, China’s Taiyuan, India’s Visakhapatnam, Indonesia’s Padang, Malaysia’s Kota Bahru, and the Philippines’ Iloilo was also enhanced during 2012.
Further, five new carriers started offering services at the airport – Singapore-based Scoot, Bhutan flag-carrier Drukair, AirAsia Philippines, Shenzhen Airlines, and all-cargo carrier Yangtze River Express.
Changi Airport is the world’s most awarded airport having garnered more than 400 accolades since the airport became operational in 1981. Changi Airport Group (Singapore) Pte Limited was formed in 2009 to manage the airport operations. It undertakes key functions such as airport operations and management, air hub development, commercial activities, and airport emergency services. Through its subsidiary Changi Airports International, the group invests in and manages foreign airports to expand the reach of Changi Airport internationally. Currently, Changi Airport handles more than 6,500 weekly scheduled flights with 110 airlines connecting Singapore to 240 cities in 60 countries around the world.
