China’s domestic airlines on the mend

Data collected by a leading travel firm ForwardKeys suggest that China’s domestic aviation market will have completely recovered to 2019 levels by early September. If correct this will by the first global market to return to pre-pandemic levels.

Olivier Ponti, VP, Insights at ForwardKeys noted the importance of this trend. He stated: “This is a highly significant moment because it if the first time, since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, that a major segment of the aviation market anywhere in the world has returned to pre-pandemic levels. The big question is whether heavy discounting will still be needed to maintain the recovery of whether the industry will return to profitability during the upcoming Golden Week holiday in October.”

When Chinese airlines resumed flying again, most implemented heavy discounts on tickets, offering seats for less than cost or selling unlimited flight passes in an attempt to get passenger number back. Although not sustainable, operators have to return to ticket costs to where they belong without the any loss in air traffic. Although this balancing act has yet to be implemented, China’s recovery is regarded as being a sign that the rest of the world will follow in due course.