Singapore Changi Airport Passenger Traffic Up 3.9 Pct In September

SINGAPORE, Oct 29 (Bernama) -- Singapore's Changi Airport handled 4.42 million passengers in September 2015, a 3.9 per cent increase year-on-year, according to Changi Airport Group (CAG). In its latest figures released Thursday, CAG said aircraft landings and takeoffs also grew 5.3 per cent to 28,460. On the cargo front, 155,100 tonnes of airfreight were processed last month, 4.9 per cent higher than a year before. CAG said Changi Airport registered 14.3 million passenger traffic movements during the July-September 2015 quarter, a growth of 5.8 per cent compared with the corresponding quarter last year. Boosted by an increase in passengers travelling with low-cost carriers following a period of depressed demand, this represents the highest ever traffic Changi has achieved in a quarter. For the quarter, traffic was positive for nine of Changi Airport’s top 10 country markets with China registering the strongest growth of 14.9 per cent year-on-year. However, passenger movements between Singapore and Indonesia declined 0.4 per cent even as Indonesia remained Changi’s top market for the period, followed by Malaysia, China, Australia and Thailand. In the first nine months of 2015, CAG said 40.9 million passengers travelled through the airport, 2.1 per cent more than the same period a year ago. Aircraft movements also increased 0.8 per cent to 257,370 while cargo shipments held steady at 1.37 million for the year to date. Jakarta continued to top the list of Changi Airport’s busiest routes so far this year, followed closely by Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Manila. Traffic between Singapore and Bangkok has registered growth of more than 20 per cent year-to-date, the highest among Changi’s top 20 destinations. As at 1 October 2015, more than 100 airlines operate at Changi Airport, connecting Singapore to some 320 cities in about 80 countries and territories. With more than 6,700 weekly scheduled flights, an aircraft takes off or lands at Changi roughly once every 90 seconds. -- BERNAMA