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Analysis Reports
We employ a global team of highly-experienced analysts who deliver a wealth of commentary about the aviation and travel industry. Our analysts don’t just report the news, they look at the big picture to help you understand how the latest news, issues and trends will affect your business. CAPA’s commitment to independence and integrity means every report is filled with accurate data and actionable insights to help you stay ahead of the game.
Since the depths of the COVID-19 crisis, seat numbers in the market between Europe and Saudi Arabia have recovered strongly, outpacing the increase in the wider Europe-Middle East market and the overall Saudi Arabian market.
In the week of 8-Apr-2024, Europe-Saudi Arabia seat capacity is at 153% of the equivalent week of 2019, whereas Europe-Middle East is at 99% and Saudi Arabia overall is at 130%.
Saudia and Turkish Airlines lead the Europe-Saudi Arabia market, but their seat share has declined since 2019. Airlines from Saudi Arabia have gained share, thanks to flynas and flyadeal, whereas Western European airlines (British Airways, Lufthansa and KLM) have lost share in this market.
Low cost airline seat share is up strongly, not only driven by flynas and flyadeal, but also by Pegasus Airlines and Wizz Air.
Europe is a key element of the Saudi government's plans to develop the kingdom both as an aviation hub and a tourist destination.
Europe-Saudi Arabia market growth is set to continue.
Vietnam's two main airlines are boosting their service to China, either through new scheduled routes or strengthened partnerships, as they seek to further build on the robust recovery of the country's most important tourist market.
Vietjet is adding to its limited number of scheduled routes to large mainland China markets, augmenting its extensive charter network in China.
Meanwhile, Vietnam Airlines is looking to upgrade its partnership with China Southern Airlines to a joint venture.
Mainland China was Vietnam's leading source of annual visitors before the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is on track to reclaim the leading spot. While Chinese outbound travel has generally recovered slowly, Vietnam has seen a stronger resurgence in such traffic than many other markets.
This market is in the spotlight at the moment, as a high-level Vietnamese government delegation has visited Beijing to emphasise the strong links between the countries. Both Vietnam Airlines and VietJet have timed announcements to coincide with the visit.
Hungarian government acquisition of Budapest Airport is imminent; VINCI joins the fray, possibly QIA
The almost two decades long saga of the Hungarian political party Fidesz's attempts to renationalise Budapest Airport (BUD), the jewel in the country's logistics and tourism crown, seems to be coming to an end.
Government sources are talking about the deal taking days, although weeks - if not months - are more likely as Hungary seeks to balance its books and reduce a crippling deficit.
It will not be a full nationalisation, as at least one private sector participant (VINCI) looks set to be involved along, possibly, with The Qatar Investment Authority, although the latter's participation remains questionable.
For VINCI it would mean a reduced degree of influence compared to what it is used to.
The loser is AviAlliance, the operator and main investor since 2005, which might be excused for asking "what did we do wrong?"
One thing is for sure: other countries in the region which have seen their airports privatised during the last 20 years will be looking to see if Hungary can fashion a new model which might better suit their circumstances amid a changing political landscape.
BRA - Braathens Regional Airlines completed a restructuring in Mar-2024, securing its financial viability for a more sustainable future.
In the week of 8-Apr-2024 its network comprised 15 routes, of which 13 are domestic and only two are international (Stockholm Bromma to Aarhus and Gothenburg to Lyon-St Exupéry). This compares with 19 routes in the equivalent week of 2019.
As a regional airline focusing strongly on the Swedish domestic market, its recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic was held back by the slow recovery of this core market.
However, the successful completion of the restructuring now gives BRA a stable platform on which to grow again in domestic Sweden, and to develop its other two business areas - namely charter operations and wet leasing.
New scheme submitted for third Dublin Airport terminal – realistic or flight of fancy? Part two
There are few examples around the world where a publicly operated airport allows a private operator to build and manage a terminal onsite - and especially one sat between two runways. Airlines operate terminals in the US, but that is usually under concession and not the same thing.
Where it does happen, the track record is not high on successful implementation and cooperation.
But that is a conceptual proposal from an Irish company which is founded by part-owners of the land on which such an edifice would be built at Dublin Airport, a 30 million + passenger airport for the Irish capital and a gateway to Europe from the west, which is operated by a state company.
There are numerous complicating factors here, as this CAPA - Centre for Aviation report spells out.
Paramount among them are capacity caps; state and airport ambitions and whether they are up to delivering them; the real motives and desire of the putative private sector developer; the influence of the local authority; the public's abhorrence of interminable queues; where the money is coming from; and the attitude of the principal airlines.
If all the various schemes, public and private, come to fruition then they would transform Dublin into an airport to rival any in Europe.
Or - it could all be just a complete 'nothingburger'.
This is part two of a two-part report.
Although demand for higher-end, premium products gained significant traction during the COVID-19 pandemic, the reality is that numerous airlines have been making investments in those offerings for quite some time.
Delta Air Lines is one of those airlines, and continues to reap the benefits of its strategy to attract premium customers by leveraging its brand - which is one of the most recognisable in the US, not just within the country's aviation sector.
The Atlanta-based airline remains bullish about the opportunities remaining for its premium offerings, and plans to reveal more about its strategy in that aspect of its business later in 2024.
New scheme submitted for third Dublin Airport terminal – realistic or flight of fancy? Part one
There are few examples around the world where a publicly operated airport allows a private operator to build and manage a terminal onsite - and especially one sat between two runways. Airlines operate terminals in the US, but that is usually under concession and not the same thing.
Where it does happen, the track record is not high on successful implementation and cooperation.
But that is a conceptual proposal from an Irish company which is founded by part-owners of the land on which such an edifice would be built at Dublin Airport, a 30 million + passenger airport for the Irish capital and a gateway to Europe from the west, which is operated by a state company.
There are numerous complicating factors here, as this CAPA - Centre for Aviation report spells out.
Paramount among them are capacity caps; state and airport ambitions and whether they are up to delivering them; the real motives and desire of the putative private sector developer; the influence of the local authority; the public's abhorrence of interminable queues; where the money is coming from; and the attitude of the principal airlines.
If all the various schemes, public and private, come to fruition then they would transform Dublin into an airport to rival any in Europe.
Or - it could all be just a complete 'nothingburger'.
This is part one of a two-part report.
While LCCs have built up a massive narrowbody order backlog in the Asia-Pacific region, this year has seen a noticeable uptick in widebody orders as airlines look to restock their long haul fleets.
This resurgence is partly due to the fact that international markets are booming again after the COVID-19 pandemic recovery, and many airlines are finding themselves short of capacity after retiring many older widebodies.
But these widebody orders are generally aimed at the longer term, as airlines restart widebody fleet modernisation programmes that have been shelved over the past four years.
There have been several significant widebody orders either announced or placed in the first quarter of 2024, and there are also more pending as airlines negotiate with manufacturers. Their choices are closely tied to their network and market strategy for the next decade or more.
CAPA ANALYST PERSPECTIVE - a series where CAPA - Centre for Aviation's analyst team provide their personal views on a hot topic facing aviation around the world.
Commercial air travel is, by its nature, a fast-moving business. Those making decisions in and around the industry need to keeping track of what's going - and that can be a daunting, difficult, or time-consuming task.
Whether its news, routes, schedules, traffic, fleets, financing, partnerships, mergers, consolidations and thousands of other topics, CAPA - Centre for Aviation covers it.
As one of the world's most trusted sources of market intelligence for the aviation and travel industry, CAPA produces, tracks and curates a huge range of news, analysis and data.
Simon Elsegood, Head of Research at CAPA - Centre for Aviation takes us on a personal journey on the platform's latest evolution.
Will Canada's 'big 3' cultivate a rational playing field in the transborder and Caribbean markets?
Now that one of Canada's ULCC start-ups Lynx Air has ceased operations, questions are arising about the status of the US transborder market and the competitive landscape on routes from Canada to sun destinations and markets in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Lynx made a transborder push in late 2023, taking on Canada's incumbent airlines in those markets.
Now, as the country's three major airlines Air Canada, WestJet and Porter continue to execute their respective transborder strategies - will a sense of rationality prevail?