World’s best airport warns of ‘daunting’ future amid virus

Bloomberg

Changi Airport Group said the impact from the Covid-19 pandemic isn’t abating as officials behind the world’s best airport warned of a “daunting” period ahead.
Passenger traffic for Changi for the fiscal year ended in March declined for the first time in more than a decade, as a slump in the last two months of the period wiped out earlier gains, serving as a harbinger of a deeper slump. To brace for “a prolonged crisis,” Changi suspended operations in two terminals to save on operating costs as flights dropped to the lowest levels in its history.
“The battle with Covid-19 has only just begun,” the company said in its annual report. “The future does appear daunting with the situation showing no signs of abatement.”
According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), 25 million jobs are at risk in airlines and associated businesses such as travel and tourism. A third of the world’s 26,000 passenger jets remain grounded, parked in deserts or lined up in rows along the
tarmac, aviation data provider Cirium says.
Amid all the gloom in May, Changi was voted the world’s best airport for an eighth consecutive year, according to a ranking by Skytrax. Changi Airport in 2019 opened Jewel,
a shopping and entertainment complex with 1.5 million square feet of stores and attractions including a rainforest, hedge maze, and the world’s highest indoor waterfall.
But the annual report revealed a grim picture of a world-class hub reduced to a fraction of its normal business from the early days of the pandemic.