PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s aviation sector passenger traffic reached 69.9 million within the first 10 months of 2023, in line with the Malaysian Aviation Commission’s (Mavcom) biannual trade report, Waypoint.
This development has led Mavcom to revise its 2023 forecast, now anticipating between 84.5 million and 86.5 million passengers, surpassing earlier projections.
Mavcom govt chairman Datuk Seri Saripuddin Kasim stated the expansion in passenger traffic highlights the continuing restoration of the aviation sector in Malaysia.
“Looking forward, we anticipate to see a extra pronounced restoration in passenger traffic for 2024. The fee anticipates passenger numbers starting from 93.9 million to 107.1 million. This signifies a restoration nearing 98% of the pre-Covid-19 pandemic ranges seen in 2019,” he stated in an announcement.
He added that the upsurge is predicted to be pushed by elevated home and worldwide journey, notably to China and the Asean area.
“However, there are potential challenges to contemplate, reminiscent of rising jet gas prices, the ringgit’s depreciation, doable delays in plane deliveries, and workforce points, which add a component of warning to our projections,” Saripuddin stated.
He stated that whereas a current resurgence of Covid-19 instances has been noticed in December 2023, Mavcom believes that its impression on the aviation trade won’t be as critical because it was beforehand.
“So far, the restoration to pre-Covid-19 pandemic ranges is predicted to remain on the forecasted trajectory,” he added.
As for Malaysia’s air cargo quantity, it noticed a downturn of 15.3% year-on-year (y-o-y), translating to 4.7 billion freight tonne kilometres (FTK) within the third quarter of 2023 (Q3’23).
Consequently, Mavcom adjusted its 2023 air cargo forecast downward, now anticipating a lower of between 14.1% and 13.5%, equating to 18.7 billion to 18.8 billion FTK.
Despite this downturn, a constructive shift is forecasted for 2024, with anticipated cargo development starting from 6.0% to six.6%, doubtlessly reaching 19.8 billion to twenty.0 billion FTK.
This anticipated upswing is attributed to the low base impact in 2023, a doable enchancment within the international expertise cycle, ongoing restoration in China, and broader financial stabilisation.
Malaysia retained its place because the fifth most linked nation in Asean, attaining a connectivity rating of 79.7 within the first three quarters of 2023.
KL International Airport Terminal 1 upheld its standing because the third-most linked airport within the area, with a direct air connectivity rating of 59.9.
