Singapore’s Changi Airport is propping up the beleaguered air cargo sector by hiking to 50 percent the rebates for the landing fees of all scheduled freighter flights at the airport in the first six months of 2013.
Changi Airport Group (CAG) said in an official statement that the additional initiative, amounting to S$4.5 million (US$3.7 million), brings CAG’s total support for the air cargo sector close to S$20 million since the start of the fiscal year 2012-2013.
In March 2012, CAG announced a S$15-million cargo support package for the fiscal year, consisting of a 20 percent landing fee rebate for freighter flights, funding support for cargo development projects, and up to 20 percent rental rebates for tenants of the airport’s cargo facilities.
While passenger traffic at Changi has grown steadily over the past year, air cargo volume has dipped due to falling yields and persistently high jet fuel prices. The International Air Transport Association has reported that the global cargo tonnage is likely to contract 2 percent in 2012.
Singapore’s growth forecast for 2012 has been cut to around 1.5 percent, following the manufacturing sector’s decline for four consecutive months and electronics manufacturing’s sharp contraction in the third quarter.
Correspondingly, total cargo throughput at Changi Airport has declined 2.7 percent year-on-year to 1.65 million tonnes for the first 11 months of 2012. For November 2012, Changi Airport handled 152,000 tonnes of cargo, a decrease of 5.1 percent compared to November 2011.
“Our cargo industry partners have expressed continued concern about the outlook for the sector given the ongoing uncertainty about the health of the world’s major economies. Hence, CAG has decided to provide this additional support to moderate operating costs for cargo airlines at Changi Airport,” said Lee Seow Hiang, CAG’s chief executive officer.
Noor Azizah Aziz, Cargolux Airlines International’s country manager for Singapore, said the additional rebate showed that CAG “is keeping in close touch with the realities of the industry.”
Photo: williamcho
