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Singapore’s Changi Airport has warned that a “catastrophic period” will ensue as the effects of the Covid-19 epidemic do not show signs of dwindling.
The Asian Transport Center is regularly voted as the best airport in the world for the 60m to 70m passenger range.
Changi has suspended operations at two terminals as flights have reached the lowest level in its history.
It has also postponed construction of the fifth terminal for at least two years.
The war with Kovid-19 has just begun, Changi Airport Group said in its annual report. “The future will look desperate in a situation showing signs of decline.”
The company’s annual results cover the period ending March 2020. This is a major setback for passengers, who have been suffering since the outbreak in January. Singapore on March 23 banned the entry and transportation of short-term visitors.
But the impact of those months was still huge, which could destroy most of the previous year’s profits in 2019. 36% of profits sank to S $ 435m ($ 319m, £ 246m).
Changi was voted the world’s best airport for the eighth consecutive year for 2020, according to a ranking by UK-based analysts Skytrax.
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Gems in the crown
Last year, Changi Airport inaugurated Jewel, a shopping and entertainment complex covering 1.5 meters square feet (14 ha). It includes stores and attractions, including the rainforest, hedge maze and the world’s largest indoor waterfall.
The new complex has been helped by the downturn in visitors, which has helped S.A.
Changi Airport Group added, “Jewel is a new landmark for Singapore and has redefined what it means to be an airport.”
But the group still paints a grim picture of the international travel hub, saying the recovery “depends heavily on how countries around the world operate border controls, relieve air travel needs and develop competent medical treatments for the virus.”
Last week, the U.S. Thousands of workers were laid off after airlines tried to negotiate a new economic relief plan in Congress.
And this month the aviation trade organization, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) downgraded its 2020 traffic forecast after a “severe end to the summer travel season”.
The IATA estimates that it will be at least 2024 before air traffic reaches pre-epidemic levels.
