Airline seat capacity is set to be back to 85 per cent of pre-COVID levels by the end of 2022, according to FCM Consulting’s latest Global Quarterly Trend Report, with the top 20 corporate airlines averaging 87 per cent of seats offered in 2022 against 2019.
FCM Consulting General Manager Felicity Burke said the global data for travel from April to June 2022 showed numbers are rebounding with 141 countries now open to fully vaccinated travellers.
“We can now forecast that by the end of 2022, global seat availability will be back to 85 per cent of pre-COVID levels, a bounceback that signifies the pent-up demand for business and leisure travel.”
“We’re seeing an uptick in aviation globally with the second quarter showing steady monthly growth in seats offered, down 23 per cent when compared to the same pre-COVID period,” she said.
Defying these stats, North America and South America are expected to be four per cent above 2019 levels by November this year, while routes between Singapore and Sydney, Melbourne and Perth were predicted to beat pre-COVID numbers in July.
Ms Burke said in terms of seats offered, the Australian domestic market is forecast to reach 83 per cent of pre-COVID levels for the full 2022 year, while New Zealand is predicted to be back to 79 per cent domestically for the year.
“Airfares globally and across the APAC region have fluctuated with average ticket purchase price increases on routes like Auckland to Melbourne but with reductions between Melbourne and Sydney for the past quarter,” she said.
For more, visit fcmtravel.com
