Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to Singapore’s Changi (SIN) — the busiest international airline route last year — has dropped to fourth place in 2024 with 5.4 million seats, just 0.5% behind the third place, according to data by flight statistics firm OAG.
This route is still above 2023 levels by 10% and is just below 2019 levels by 3%.
The busiest airline route in 2024 is Hong Kong (HKG) to Taipei (TPE) with 6.8 million seats. It last held the top spot in 2019.
Although the capacity on this route has grown by 48% compared to the previous year, it remains 15% lower than the levels seen in 2019.
All routes across Asia Pacific have seen significant growth in 2024, as the region continues the post-pandemic recovery, OAG notes.
Cairo (CAI) to Jeddah (JED) with 5.5 million seats took second place, while third place goes to Seoul Incheon (ICN) to Tokyo Narita (NRT) with 5.4 million seats. Capacity on the latter route has increased by 30% compared to 2023 levels and is 68% higher than 2019.
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Bangkok (BKK) to HKG has moved up into the seventh place with 4.2 million seats, a capacity increase of 29% compared to 2023 but still 13% behind 2019.
“With the Asia Pacific region very close to a full recovery, the busiest routes are concentrated in the familiar major hubs of Hong Kong, Seoul Incheon and Singapore, although the composition of the supply on those routes is changing as the low-cost sector continues its growth at a faster rate than legacy,” says OAG chief analyst John Grant.
