Sydney Airport boss blames reduced capacity and high fares for stagnant recovery

Sydney Airport’s chief executive, Geoff Culbert, has blamed high airfares and reduced airline capacity for stagnant domestic passenger recovery, as the airport reported a total of 2.7 million travellers for February.

Domestic passenger traffic through Sydney continues to hover at just over 80 per cent on pre-pandemic figures, with 1.7 million travellers last month.

“The domestic passenger recovery at Sydney Airport has been stagnant since April last year, with reduced capacity and high airfares impacting people’s travelling habits,” Culbert said.

Data from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Research Economics released on Thursday shows that in March the cheapest discount economy and business class fares have been at the highest rates since December, despite trending down from a 15-year peak in the middle of 2022.

The cheapest airfares this month are about 5 per cent more expensive than during the same period last year.

Just over 1 million international passengers passed through Sydney’s terminals in February, about 75 per cent of the average before COVID-19. The bulk of international traffic remains Australians visiting abroad. The number of US travellers increased to 80 per cent of pre-pandemic figures over the month.

There are now six airlines servicing 26 flights a week between Sydney and mainland China, but the number of Chinese nationals continues to lag at 25 per cent of 2019 figures.

“Momentum is starting to build in our international recovery, with China now back open to tourists after three years of border restrictions,” Culbert said.