On Wednesday last week, International Air Transport Association (IATA) director-general Willie Walsh told an online news conference that Hong Kong is no longer an international flight hub due to the government’s restrictions on inbound flights and its requirements for passenger quarantine.
“It’s effectively off the map now, and I think it’s going to be difficult for Hong Kong to recover,” Walsh said. “It’s going to lag significantly behind the recovery that we’re seeing elsewhere and has led to a tough time for all airlines operating there.”
Walsh’s remarks were undoubtedly a warning sign to Cathay Pacific Airways, which is based in Hong Kong. They were also a wake-up call for Taiwan’s aviation industry and Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
First, Hong Kong International Airport was repeatedly paralyzed by the anti-extradition law and democracy demonstrations over the past few years. Then, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hong Kong government adopted circuit-breaker measures for international passenger flights and suspended all transit passenger operations.
As a result, the airport has gradually lost its international flight hub status, and Cathay Pacific Airways’ operations have suffered. Even with a fleet of cargo planes similar to that of China Airlines, the company is finding it difficult to extricate itself from the nightmare of constant financial losses.
China Airlines and EVA Airways, Taiwan’s two largest international airlines, heavily relied on cargo flights last year to generate substantial profits. Their revenue from passenger flights during the same period was dismal. With no sign of improvement in the global COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of this year, the two major airlines would inevitably continue to rely on their cargo-based operations in hopes of continued profitability.
Although passenger flights are not profitable at the moment, they are still crucial to maintaining the competitiveness of the airlines’ flight networks, and the status of Taoyuan airport as an international flight hub.
While Hong Kong airport has lost its role as an international flight hub, Taoyuan airport has failed to absorb any transit passengers to consolidate its role as a hub connecting Southeast Asia and North America.
Just like Hong Kong airport, Taoyuan airport might slowly lose its geographical advantage due to the suspension of passenger transit operations in May last year.
Since then, connecting passengers have been absorbed by Singapore, Tokyo, Incheon and other airports seeking to consolidate their positions, and such passengers can generate revenue, to a lesser or larger degree. In particular, the Singaporean government’s subsidies and support for its aviation industry are key to keeping Singapore Changi Airport an international flight center.
As President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) wrote on Facebook earlier this month, the goal of COVID-19 prevention at this stage is the new Taiwanese model of “zero serious cases and effective control of minor ones,” with the aim of minimizing the effects of the pandemic on people’s livelihood and Taiwan’s economy.
In that case, the Central Epidemic Command Center should also consider reopening Taoyuan airport to transit passengers. By doing so, the airport will be able to consolidate its position as an international flight hub, while Taiwan tries to maintain its competitiveness with Japan, Singapore and South Korea.
Anderson Fu is a senior traffic manager at an airline.
Translated by Eddy Chang
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