Summary
- The Group has been soaring with 3.23 million passengers in May, ahead of pre-pandemic levels.
- Capacity increased by 12.6%, with a revenue passenger kilometers rise of 10.2% for Singapore Airlines.
- Scoot saw a 5.4% increase in passengers in May, with load factors ranging from 86.8% to 91.2%.
Fresh from posting its highest-ever revenue and profit in a financial year, the Singapore Airlines Group delivered another positive set of performance numbers in May. The Group has been ahead of pre-pandemic traffic figures for the last few months, and once again in May, both Scoot and Singapore Airlines bounced further ahead to consign the COVID-era to the history books.
The Group is soaring
The Singapore Airlines Group, which includes Singapore Airlines and Scoot, has kept its 2024 momentum going by carrying 3.23 million passengers in May, 14.3% more than the 2.83 million it carried in 2023 and 6% ahead of the 3.05 million transported in May 2019. While the year-on-year (YoY) passenger load factor dropped from 88.0% in May 2023 to 86.1% this year, that was still well ahead of the 2019 Group load factor of 80.5%.
Photo: imranahmedsg / Shutterstock.com
Focusing on the YoY comparisons, capacity, as measured by available seat kilometers, increased by 12.6%, while revenue passenger kilometers rose by 10.2%, which is why the load factor fell by 1.9 percentage points to 86.1%. Singapore Airlines and Scoot have been highly disciplined in managing loads but have also added capacity on routes that have proven popular previously, so we can expect the load factor to grow in the coming months.
Related
Singapore Airlines Posts Record Revenues and Profits for 2023/24
The Singapore Airlines Group has followed a clear strategy of being the first mover in Asia, which has paid off in record revenues and profits.
The airline’s results
In 2019, the Group also included regional airline Silk Air, so the traffic results are broken down into three airlines, whereas today, only Singapore Airlines and Scoot are operational. Silk Air faded out in 2021, and all its flights were progressively transferred to those two airlines. In the May 2019 report, there is a snippet about Silk Air that attributes a capacity decline of 1.2% YoY to the withdrawal of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet from service and route transfers to Scoot.
Photo: Silk Air
Singapore Airlines has blossomed in 2024, particularly in the last few months, and in May it increased passenger numbers by 19.2% compared to the previous year. The full-service carrier transported 2.17 million passengers at a load factor of 85.6%, well ahead of the 1.82 million in 2023, albeit with a reduced load factor to the 87.2% recorded last year.
Photo: IanC66 | Shutterstock
Scoot has been ahead of COVID numbers for some time, and in May, it carried 1.06 million passengers, a 5.4% increase compared to the 1 million it carried in May 2023. Scoot added 4.2% capacity while demand, as measured by revenue passenger kilometers, increased by 1.2%, reducing the load factor by 2.6 percentage points to 88.1%.
Related
Scoot Takes Delivery Of First Embraer E190-E2
Singapore’s low-cost carrier Scoot received its first Embraer E190-E2 jet in Brazil and it will soon be flying regional routes in Asia-Pacific.
Scoot reports load factors by just three geographical segments, reaching 91.2% for the Rest of the World, which includes Australia, 89.7% for West Asia and 86.8% for East Asia. In May, Scoor commenced passenger flights to Koh Samui (Thailand) using its new Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, the first of nine to join its fleet.
At the end of May, the Singapore Airlines Group passenger network spanned 123 destinations in 36 countries and territories. Singapore Airlines served 77 destinations, Scoot served 68, and the cargo network comprised 127 destinations in 37 countries and territories.
Have you flown with Scoot recently? Let us know in the comments.