Changi Airport August cargo falls 4.4pc, but passenger numbers rise

SINGAPORE Changi Airport handled 146,400 tonnes of cargo in August, representing a decline of 4.4 per cent year on year.

With regards to passenger numbers, they rose by 10.9 per cent in August to 4.28 million. Air traffic movements for the month also grew by 6.5 per cent to 27,400 flights.

Demand for air travel to and from south east Asia, south Asia, south west Pacific, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas was strong, with double-digit growth registered for each of these regions, a statement said.

In the first eight months of 2012, cargo volumes dropped by 1.9 per cent to total 1.20 million tonnes compared to the same period a year earlier.

Year-to-date passenger numbers are up 10.5 per cent to 33.6 million, and flight movements are up nine per cent to 214,000 flights.

On the cargo front, Singapore Airlines Cargo commenced a weekly freighter service to Viracopos in Brazil in August. The return flight takes a Viracopos-Dallas-Brussels-Sharjah-Singapore route.

Last month also saw the launch by Scoot of four times-weekly Singapore-Tianjin services and commenced thrice-weekly Singapore-Taipei services this month. These were the airline's fourth and fifth destinations, respectively, since the launch of its Sydney, Gold Coast and Bangkok flights.