Changi Airport in Singapore handled a record-breaking 55.4 million passengers in 2015, a 2.5% increase when compared with the previous year. The airport also reported record aircraft movements for the same period after accommodating 346,330 flights, an increase of 1.4% when compared to 2014.
Changi Airport registered 5.29 million passenger movements in December 2015, making it the busiest month in the airport’s 35-year history. The airport’s daily record was also broken on December 19, 2015, after it served more than 192,000 passengers.
Lee Seow Hiang, CEO of Changi Airport Group (CAG), the airport operator, said, “2015 was a year of two halves for Changi Airport. Following 2014, which saw a number of airline incidents in the region and depressed yields for many regional carriers, we had a relatively weak first six months with flat growth for the period.
“Nevertheless, we pressed on to actively woo new airlines and seek growth opportunities with existing ones, and our efforts have yielded some positive outcomes. We have seen both full-service and low-cost carriers add capacity in recent months and this has resulted in stronger passenger growth of about 5% for the second half of the year.
“Going forward, economic uncertainty in many markets, made worse by lackluster business and consumer confidence, may dampen travel demand in the near term. However, low fuel prices should support airlines’ profitability. The outlook for Changi is also bolstered by positive developments such as the addition of new city links and airlines in the coming months. These include Singapore Airlines’ new services to Dusseldorf (Germany), Canberra (Australia) and Wellington (New Zealand) in the second half of this year, as well as the arrival of Fiji Airways’ new direct service from Nadi in April.
“Closer to our hub, Asia continues to present exciting growth opportunities, with untapped tourism potential in many parts of the continent, and growing affluence in the emerging economies driving air travel.
“Here, Changi Airport is well placed to capture future growth with our expanding network, including many secondary cities, to key markets like China, India and Indonesia. We will continue to work closely with our airline partners to establish new connections to develop the Singapore air hub and better serve our passengers.”
