Singapore Changi Airport reports that it handled 4.48m passenger movements during May 2015, up 2.6% compared to the same month in 2014, while flight movements rose marginally by 0.4% to 29,000.

 

A total of 157,000 tonnes of air freight was processed over the same period, corresponding to a 0.3% decrease year-on-year. Changi management added that traffic growth was mainly fuelled by travel demand across Asia, offset by a decline in Europe and Southwest Pacific travel.

 

Better news was that out of Changi Airport’s top 10 country markets, passenger movements to and from China (+9.5%) and Thailand (+18%) registered the strongest growth. For the 12 months ended May 2015, traffic between Singapore and these two markets rose by 1.0% and 2.9% respectively.

 

 

Significantly, this was the first period increase on a rolling 12-monthly basis since July 2014 for China and since March 2014 for Thailand.

 

In its monthly breakdown of passenger movements, the Changi Airport Group reports 4.420m passengers in January (-3.8%); 4.121m in February (+0.3%); 4.535m in March (+0.9%); 4.391m in April (+0.2%); and 4.480m in May (+2.6%).

 

Highlights in May also included the launch of the Bangkok-based low-cost carrier NokScoot which launched its daily service from Bangkok Don Mueang to Singapore on 20 May – representing the eighth airline to operate between the two cities.

 

In addition, Tigerair introduced a new four-times weekly Singapore–Ipoh service on 29 May, with Ipoh the fourth Malaysian city in its network. In addition, SilkAir introduced a three-times a week service to Cairns, Australia on 30 May on a circular routing which includes Darwin.

 

A new city link, Cairns is the eighth Australian city served from Changi Airport, which claims to be the most connected airport in the world to Australia in terms of airline seats available.

 

New shops opened at Changi Airport in May included Bonia Natural’s second store in the Terminal 3 transit area, while in Terminal 1 Changi Recommends made its debut in the transit area, offering departing passengers quick and handy travel solutions such as flight ticketing, overseas compatible SIM cards, plus a range of souvenirs.

 

The Chocolatier also made its debut at Changi Airport with its first store in Terminal 2 (Transit) and O’Leary’s opened its second sports restaurant in Terminal 1. Pizzeria PEZZO completed the month’s new openings with a new kiosk in Terminal 2 where it is selling its well known pizzas by-the-slice.