Finnair scheduled traffic up 57.1% in May 2004

In May 2004, demand (RPK's = revenue passenger kilometers) in Finnair scheduled traffic increased by 57.1% compared to last year. Passenger load factor was 62.1% up, 11.9 percentage points. Comparison figures from May 2003, particularly in Asian traffic, were weakened by the SARS situation. The growth rate in the scheduled traffic against May 2002 was 19.5%.

Finnair Group airlines transported 666,700 passengers, which is 28.9% more than a year ago. The total traffic (RPK's), summing up both scheduled and leisure traffic, increased by 39.4%, while the capacity (ASK = available seat kilometres) was up by 22.4%, resulting in a passenger load factor of 66.4%, 8.1 points higher than last year. 

Departure punctuality of scheduled flights was 93.9% (based on a fifteen minute standard), 1.9 points lower than in May 2003. Including leisure flights departure punctuality was 92.9% (-2.1 p.p). Arrival punctuality scheduled flights was 94.7% and that of all operations was 93.4%.

Finnair's Tallinn-based subsidiary Aero Airlines AS, carried 11,400 passengers (+12.0%) on Tallinn-Helsinki route. During May, Stockholm-based Nordic Airlink carried 51,300 passengers on its Scandinavian routes.

Scheduled traffic

In scheduled traffic (international + domestic) revenue passenger kilometres increased by 57.1%. The change in capacity was +27.0%. Passenger load factor was 62.1%, 11.9 percentage points higher than last year.

In scheduled international traffic, total number of passengers was up by 49.6%, partly affected by adding Nordig Airlink figures. Capacity in ASKs was +30.7%, while RPKs increased by 64.1%.

In European scheduled traffic, ASKs increased by 20.8%, and as RPKs increased by 32.8%, the passenger load factor was 57.5%, up 5.2 points from previous year.

In North Atlantic scheduled traffic, capacity decreased by 20.4%. Change in RPKs was -2.9%, and passenger load factor for May was 82.5%, 14.8 points higher than previous year.

In Asian scheduled traffic, capacity increase was 73.2% due to the addition of Osaka flights in June and Shanghai flights in September 2003. The passenger traffic was up by 204.4%. Passenger load factor was 67.8%, 29.2 percentage points up. Compared with May 2002 the Asian traffic RPK's increased by 52.5%.

Domestic scheduled traffic increased by 13.7% on a capacity increase of 4.3%. Passenger load factor increased by 4.5 percentage points to 54.2%.

Leisure traffic

ASKs for leisure traffic increased in May by 7.0%, and RPKs increased by 4.6%, resulting in a passenger load factor of 83.6%, 2.0 points lower than last year.

Cargo

Cargo traffic increased by 24.9% in terms of cargo tonnes carried. Growth in scheduled traffic was +18.1%. Increase in Asian traffic was 44.3%. Volume in European traffic increased by 6.6%. In North-Atlantic traffic cargo volume decreased by 12.7%. Cargo traffic carried on chartered cargo flights increased 65.2%. The new key ratio cargo load factor including all traffic categories was 64.2%. The cargo load factor in the Asian traffic was 82.7% and in the North Atlantic traffic 71.1%.