Major carriers across Asia are witnessing unprecedented demand for flights to Europe as travelers increasingly avoid Middle Eastern connection points due to ongoing regional conflicts, according to industry reports released this week.
Airlines including Cathay Pacific Airways from Hong Kong, Singapore Airlines, Korean Air Lines, and Australia’s Qantas Airways all announced strong performance numbers for European routes during March, despite facing doubled jet fuel costs.
“We have … mounted additional flights and capacity to Europe in March and April to cater for an upsurge in market demand as passengers prioritised alternative routings,” stated Cathay Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Lavinia Lau on Friday.
Lau indicated that robust demand patterns are anticipated to extend through April, driven by Easter holiday travel and growing numbers of long-distance bookings connecting through Hong Kong.
Singapore Airlines experienced particularly dramatic growth, with European flight occupancy climbing to 93.5% in March compared to 79.7% during the same period last year. This increase stemmed partly from redirected Europe-bound passengers as Middle Eastern hub capacity declined, representing the most significant regional gain for the carrier.
Prior to current conflicts, Emirates, Qatar Airways, and Etihad Airways collectively handled approximately one-third of all passenger traffic flowing between Europe and Asia, while managing over half of all travelers journeying from Europe to Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific Island destinations, according to aviation analytics company Cirium.
While the three major Gulf airlines have been steadily rebuilding their operations, with each now operating at minimum 60% of pre-conflict flight schedules based on Flightradar24 tracking data, they face additional obstacles including Australia’s advisory warning citizens against traveling through or even making connections in Gulf states, which voids travel insurance coverage.
Consequently, passengers must pay premium prices for flights that bypass Gulf region airports, Google Travel pricing data reveals.
For economy-class round-trip tickets from Sydney to London departing next Saturday, Etihad’s Abu Dhabi route offers the lowest price at A$1,861 ($1,333.59). For travelers avoiding Middle Eastern connections, the most economical one-stop alternatives include United Airlines at A$3,144 via San Francisco and Thai Airways at A$3,901 through Bangkok.
Bank of America financial analysts noted in a recent assessment that “tight pricing and share gains on Asia-Europe routes could persist for 6-12 months even after the end of the war given forward booking lags and traveler risk aversion.”
Korean Air demonstrated strong European performance in preliminary first-quarter results, with operating income increasing 47.3% to 517 billion won ($349.38 million).
The Seoul-headquartered airline credited this improvement partially to “increased demand between Europe and Asia due to the Middle East war,” with European passenger revenues climbing 18% year-over-year.
Moving forward, Korean Air anticipates “strong transit demand” benefiting from reduced market capacity among Middle Eastern competitors.
Qantas reported operational adjustments to capitalize on the traffic shift, reallocating aircraft from U.S. and domestic services to expand Paris and Rome flight offerings.
“Qantas continues to see strong demand for international travel to Europe as customers seek alternative routes,” the carrier announced.
Australia’s air traffic management authority, Airservices Australia, reported that Australia-Middle East traffic declined 77% year-over-year in March as services redirected through other metropolitan areas.
“Asian gateways such as Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Seoul are capturing much of this displaced demand and may emerge as alternative hubs and travel destinations,” Airservices stated.
