Home » today » Business » Flight performance of the aviation industry in 2020 is cut in half by Corona 19

Flight performance of the aviation industry in 2020 is cut in half by Corona 19

360,000 in 2005 → 730,000 in 2019 → 440,000 in 2020
The total number of flights steadily increased since the appearance of Jeju Air in 2006… The aviation industry market has grown thanks to the advent of LCC
The biggest hit of Corona 19 is stagnant cargo traffic compared to the increased number of passengers



Top Daily Reporter Seong-Hwa Kim = The shock that Corona 19 threw on the aviation industry is truly unprecedented. Corona 19 is like an unprecedented disaster to the extent that the aviation industry, which has always been growing, crashes like this.

According to the National Statistical Office on the 22nd, as of December last year, the total number of flights including passengers and cargo by Korean airlines was 33,181 times.

By airline, Korean Air was the most frequent with 8376 flights, Asiana Airlines with 6015 flights, Jeju Air with 4924, Jin Air with 4556, T’way Air with 4128, Air Busan with 3683, Air Seoul with 1144, and Fly Gangwon with 220 times, Air Incheon 135 times, Eastar Jet 0 times.

On an annual basis, the number of airline operations, which reached 730,000 in 2019, fell 40% to 440,000 last year.

According to statistics from the National Statistical Office, there is a difference by airline, but the number of flights by domestic airlines increased from 2005 to 2019, and the impact last year was even greater.

In particular, competition in the aviation industry became fierce due to the advent of LCC (Low Cost Carrier), but the number of flights of FSC (‘Full Service Carrier) has not decreased even after Jeju Air was launched in 2006. The number of flights combined with Korean Air and Asiana Airlines in 2005 was 36,1515, and in 2019, there is no significant difference to 353,121.

photo-layout image photo_58936 max-width-600 float-center" data-idxno="58936" data-type="photo">
Number of flights by airline. Source = Statistics Korea. Graphic = Reporter Seonghwa Kim

Looking at the aviation industry as a whole, it seems that the existence of LCCs was essential for the market to grow. As of the month, the number of airlines has more than doubled from 4.37 million in January 2005 to 10.62 million in December 2019. The number of foreigners is more than 13 million. Annually, it increased from 53.2 million in 2005 to 12,763 million.

It is also because cargo performance has not grown as much as tourists have been hit by Corona 19, and passenger performance has increased the portion of revenue. In 2005, airlines’ cargo transportation performance was 2.5 million tons, and in 2019, it was only 3.14 million tons, an increase of only 25% over 15 years.

Looking at 2020, both the number of passengers and the performance of cargo transportation are less than that of the previous year, but the degree is different. The number of passengers in 2020 was 60.3 million, a decrease of more than 50% compared to the previous year, and cargo transportation performance decreased by only 20% to 2.25 million tons. Both passenger performance and cargo performance showed an increase in July last year, but passenger performance has been fluctuating, while cargo performance has been steadily increasing.

photo-layout image photo_58937 max-width-600 float-center" data-idxno="58937" data-type="photo">Number of passengers by airline.  Source = Statistics Korea.  Graphic = Reporter Seonghwa Kim
Number of passengers by airline. Source = Statistics Korea. Graphic = Reporter Seonghwa Kim

photo-layout image photo_58938 max-width-600 float-center" data-idxno="58938" data-type="photo">Cargo traffic volume (tons) by airline.  Source = Statistics Korea.  Graphic = Reporter Seonghwa Kim
Cargo traffic volume (tons) by airline. Source = Statistics Korea. Graphic = Reporter Seonghwa Kim

In that respect, the LCC’s blow is considered to be fortunate that companies have not disappeared. In particular, Eastar Jet has been unable to provide passenger service since April of last year, recording only 16% (1.55 million) compared to 2019. In addition, Korean Air recorded 33% (11.75 million) and Asiana 41% (10.99 million). As the scale was large, the decline was significant. Compared to 2019, Jeju Air recorded 53% (797 million people), Air Busan 58% (7.1 million people), Jin Air 64% (797 million people), and T-way 77% (8.6 million people). LCCs have made up for the decrease in passenger numbers by turning international flights to domestic flights, but profitability is difficult to compare with international flights.

It seems clear that the revenue could only survive due to cargo. Korean Air and Asiana Airlines’ share of the total cargo transportation performance has been steadily at least 80% since 2005, but last year exceeded 90 again after five years since 2015. In terms of tonnage, the total freight volume decreased by 30%, but Korean Air and Asiana Airlines decreased by only about 14% from 2.67 million tons to 2.31 million tons. In particular, starting in July of this year, both airlines are showing some recovery from their previous levels.


Copyright © Top Daily Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.