KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 – Fears over the Influenza A (H1N1) virus appears to have compounded the woes of a contracting aviation industry especially in the Asia Pacific region where governments have introduced travel restrictions.
Figures released from the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) show that it lost 15 per cent of its passenger load in May as compared to the same month last year.
It is a marked increase from earlier in the year, where the year-on-year drop was only 10.5 per cent according to AAPA director-general Andrew Herdman, who believes that governments in Asia Pacific are over-reacting to the virus outbreak.
However, cargo figures are stabilising after a 23.2 per cent decline earlier in the year, May saw Asia Pacific experiencing a smaller 18.6 per cent drop.
The passenger and cargo figures combined point towards improving economic conditions but passengers themselves are reluctant to travel, which appears to be caused by fears of contracting Influenza A.
“Anxieties over the spread of swine flu certainly aren’t helping,” Herdman said.
He explained that the effect of the virus was more prominent in Asia Pacific because “despite clear advice from the World Health Organisation (WHO) against the imposition of border controls or travel restrictions, we have seen a number of governments, particularly here in the Asia Pacific region, introducing such measures, in the mistaken belief that the spread of the virus can be contained.”
By comparison, global figures released by the International Air Transport Association (Iata) showed that its year-on-year passenger demand had only dipped by 9.3 per cent last month, as compared to 3.1 per cent in April and a recent high of 11.1 per cent in March.
Herdman also expressed that the figures “undermine any optimism that a recovery is already underway. We’re still seeing a deterioration in market conditions.”
He called on governments to review any restrictions placed, as they are an “unnecessary inconvenience” and impose “a cost on society which may well exceed any public health benefit.”
“We urge governments to carefully review their actions, and to take full account of the wider economic and social impacts, before imposing further restrictions on the movement of people around the world,” he said.
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