Asia’s aviation boom hits snags

MANILA Routes Asia’s main conference session, closed Monday, with renewed calls for regulators and airports to address infrastructure issues in the region.

Routes Asia Online content manager, Richard Maslen, reported senior executives of some of the region’s fastest-growing airlines highlighted infrastructure issues as one of the biggest issues impacting growth in the region.

IATA regional vice president Asia-Pacific and panel moderator, Conrad Clifford, said 100 million passengers were expected to enter the Asia-Pacific market each year for the next 20 years.

But the snag that could derail the travel boom was the region’s problems developing aviation infrastructure.

HK Express, chief executive officer, Andrew Cowen claimed there was a “mismatch … in the time line for airports. What we are all seeing…is low-cost carriers in general creating a lot of new demand that’s not really picked up in these bigger forecast models for future infrastructure.”

AirAsia Philippines chief executive officer, Joy Caneba, added that better infrastructure would also make it easier for airlines to operate more effectively, a strategy that is particularly important for budget airlines seeking to minimise the arrivals and departure process to reduce costs.

Cebu Pacific cautioned airport management companies not pass on the infrastructure cost burden to airlines, especially increases in commission and runway fees.

The conference discussion concluded that airports needed to consider capacity growth and the ability to deliver the required projects on time.

But there was a viewpoint that future needs of a fast growing market could not be met by just focusing on the region’s primary airports. Secondary airports need to be developed with airline fees set competitively to attract flights. This would take pressure off gateway airports across the region and reduce travelling times and costs for passengers.