A recently released Airports Council International (ACI) World report examined the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, assessing passenger traffic and freight volume.
Per the ACI analysis, global passenger traffic declined by 10.7 percent in February, versus a 1.9 percent rise in the previous month, with the decrease attributed to the COVID-19 outbreak in the Asia-Pacific region.
Meanwhile, the ACI maintains the pandemic’s impact on freight industry numbers indicated global volumes declined by 0.5 percent on a year-over-year basis, adding the global 12-month rolling average stood at minus 2.7 percent at the end of February.
“The coming year will pose major challenges for the industry, as travel restrictions and lockdown measures continue to impact the industry,” ACI World Director General Angela Gittens said. “Since we can expect that a global recession will take hold, it is now likely that the impacts of COVID-19 may be felt well into 2021.”
The scope of work for ACI’s report involved collecting and analyzing data from a sample of airports providing regular reports on month-by-month passenger and air freight statistics – forming part of the most comprehensive source for airport data.
“The global recession that is starting to take hold due to the crisis will likely create a major demand shock and the current disruptions in supply chains, as well as declines in airline capacity, are likely to also impact the industry negatively,” Gittens said.
She said the circumstance requires urgent action by governments to assist the aviation industry in protecting jobs and essential operations, noting the effort should include such measures as direct financial assistance and tax relief to benefit the entire aviation ecosystem.