Latest news with #IATA
The South African
a day ago
- The South African
Passport Index: SA loses access to another visa-free country
South Africa's passport power has decreased yet again, according to the latest Henley Passport Index, which revealed the newest rankings of all of the world's passports for 2025. The Henley Passport Index is the original, authoritative ranking of all the world's passports according to the number of destinations their passport-holders can travel to visa-free. 'With historical data spanning 19 years, the Henley Passport Index is the only one of its kind based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA). The index includes 199 different passports and 227 different travel destinations.' Henley & Partners says. According to these rankings, the SA passport has dropped another spot from 50 to 51 on the list of 199 passports. The index also highlighted that South Africans can now only travel to 103 destinations, after losing visa-free travel access to Nigeria. South Africans travelling to this African nation will now require an e-visa for entry. Here are is the updated list of the top five most powerful passports: Rank Country Number of visa-free countries 1 Singapore 193 2 Japan 190 2 South Korea 190 3 Denmark 189 3 Finland 189 3 France 189 3 Germany 189 3 Ireland 189 3 Italy 189 3 Spain 189 4 Austria 188 4 Belgium 188 4 Luxembourg 188 4 Netherlands 188 4 Norway 188 4 Portugal 188 4 Sweden 188 5 Greece 187 5 New Zealand 187 5 Switzerland 187 Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Time of India
a day ago
- Business
- Time of India
Southeast Asia Budget Airlines: Southeast Asia's Budget Airlines Push for Growth Amidst Rising Costs and Competition, ET TravelWorld
Advt Advt Join the community of 2M+ industry professionals. Subscribe to Newsletter to get latest insights & analysis in your inbox. All about ETTravelWorld industry right on your smartphone! Download the ETTravelWorld App and get the Realtime updates and Save your favourite articles. Southeast Asia's biggest budget airlines are pursuing a bruising capacity expansion race despite rising cost pressures that are squeezing profitability and led Qantas Airways to shut down Singapore-based offshoot Jetstar carriers have proliferated in Asia in the past two decades as disposable incomes rise, supported by robust travel demand from Chinese for air travel in Asia is expected to grow faster than other regions in the next few decades and carriers like Vietnam's VietJet Aviation and Malaysia-headquartered AirAsia are to buy more planes to add to their already large orderbooks as they seek to gain market margins are thinner than in other regions. The International Air Transport Association (IATA), an airline industry body, this year expects Asia-Pacific airlines to make a net profit margin of 1.9 per cent, compared with a global average of 3.7 per across Asia have largely restored capacity since the pandemic, which has intensified competition, especially for price-sensitive budget travellers, and pulled airfares down from recent high airfares in Asia dropped 12 per cent in 2024 from 2023, ForwardKeys data shows. AirAsia, the region's largest budget carrier, reported a 9 per cent decline in average airfares in the first quarter as it added capacity and passed savings from lower fuel prices onto its to challenges for airlines, costs such as labour and airport charges are also rising, while a shortage of new planes is driving up leasing and maintenance shifting landscape prompted Australia's Qantas to announce last week that its loss-making low-cost intra-Asia subsidiary Jetstar Asia would shut down by the end of July after two decades of Asia said it had seen "really high cost increases" at its Singapore base, including double-digit rises in fuel, airport fees, ground handling and security charges."It is a very thin buffer, and with margins this low, any cost increase can impact an airline's viability," said IATA Asia-Pacific Vice President Sheldon Hee, adding that operating costs were escalating in the data firm OAG in a February white paper said Asia-Pacific was the world's most competitive aviation market, with airfares driven down by rapid capacity expansion "perhaps to a point where profits are compromised"."Balancing supply to demand and costs to revenue have never been more critical," the report said of the region's Asia has an unusually high concentration of international budget flights. Around two-thirds of international seats within Southeast Asia so far this year were on budget carriers, compared to about one-third of international seats globally, CAPA Centre for Aviation data took the option to move Jetstar Asia's aircraft to more cost-efficient operations in Australia and New Zealand rather than continue to lose money, analysts operators in Southeast Asia were struggling for profits amid fierce competition even before the pandemic and now there is the added factor of higher costs, said Asia-based independent aviation analyst Brendan carriers offer bargain fares by driving operating costs as low as possible. Large fleets of one aircraft type drive efficiencies of Asia was much smaller than local rivals, with only 13 aircraft. As of March 31, Singapore Airlines' budget offshoot Scoot had 53 planes, AirAsia had 225 and VietJet had 117, including its Thai arm. Low-cost Philippine carrier Cebu Pacific had four are adding more planes to their fleets this year and further into the on Tuesday signed a provisional deal to buy up to another 150 single-aisle Airbus planes at the Paris Airshow, in a move it said was just the beginning as the airline pursues ambitious deal comes weeks after it ordered 20 A330neo wide-body planes, alongside an outstanding order for 200 Boeing 737 MAX which has an existing orderbook of at least 350 planes, is also in talks to buy 50 to 70 long-range single-aisle jetliners, and 100 regional jets that could allow it to expand to more destinations, its CEO Tony Fernandes said on Wednesday."At the end of the day, it is go big or go home," said Subhas Menon, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines.
Time of India
a day ago
- Business
- Time of India
Southeast Asia Budget Airlines: Southeast Asia's Budget Airlines Push for Growth Amidst Rising Costs and Competition, ET Infra
Advt Advt Go big or go home Southeast Asia's biggest budget airlines are pursuing a bruising capacity expansion race despite rising cost pressures that are squeezing profitability and led Qantas Airways to shut down Singapore-based offshoot Jetstar carriers have proliferated in Asia in the past two decades as disposable incomes rise, supported by robust travel demand from Chinese for air travel in Asia is expected to grow faster than other regions in the next few decades and carriers like Vietnam's VietJet Aviation and Malaysia-headquartered AirAsia are to buy more planes to add to their already large orderbooks as they seek to gain market margins are thinner than in other regions. The International Air Transport Association (IATA), an airline industry body, this year expects Asia-Pacific airlines to make a net profit margin of 1.9 per cent, compared with a global average of 3.7 per across Asia have largely restored capacity since the pandemic, which has intensified competition, especially for price-sensitive budget travellers, and pulled airfares down from recent high airfares in Asia dropped 12 per cent in 2024 from 2023, ForwardKeys data shows. AirAsia, the region's largest budget carrier, reported a 9 per cent decline in average airfares in the first quarter as it added capacity and passed savings from lower fuel prices onto its to challenges for airlines, costs such as labour and airport charges are also rising, while a shortage of new planes is driving up leasing and maintenance shifting landscape prompted Australia's Qantas to announce last week that its loss-making low-cost intra-Asia subsidiary Jetstar Asia would shut down by the end of July after two decades of Asia said it had seen "really high cost increases" at its Singapore base, including double-digit rises in fuel, airport fees, ground handling and security charges."It is a very thin buffer, and with margins this low, any cost increase can impact an airline's viability," said IATA Asia-Pacific Vice President Sheldon Hee, adding that operating costs were escalating in the data firm OAG in a February white paper said Asia-Pacific was the world's most competitive aviation market, with airfares driven down by rapid capacity expansion "perhaps to a point where profits are compromised"."Balancing supply to demand and costs to revenue have never been more critical," the report said of the region's Asia has an unusually high concentration of international budget flights. Around two-thirds of international seats within Southeast Asia so far this year were on budget carriers, compared to about one-third of international seats globally, CAPA Centre for Aviation data took the option to move Jetstar Asia's aircraft to more cost-efficient operations in Australia and New Zealand rather than continue to lose money, analysts operators in Southeast Asia were struggling for profits amid fierce competition even before the pandemic and now there is the added factor of higher costs, said Asia-based independent aviation analyst Brendan carriers offer bargain fares by driving operating costs as low as possible. Large fleets of one aircraft type drive efficiencies of Asia was much smaller than local rivals, with only 13 aircraft. As of March 31, Singapore Airlines' budget offshoot Scoot had 53 planes, AirAsia had 225 and VietJet had 117, including its Thai arm. Low-cost Philippine carrier Cebu Pacific had four are adding more planes to their fleets this year and further into the on Tuesday signed a provisional deal to buy up to another 150 single-aisle Airbus planes at the Paris Airshow, in a move it said was just the beginning as the airline pursues ambitious deal comes weeks after it ordered 20 A330neo wide-body planes, alongside an outstanding order for 200 Boeing 737 MAX which has an existing orderbook of at least 350 planes, is also in talks to buy 50 to 70 long-range single-aisle jetliners, and 100 regional jets that could allow it to expand to more destinations, its CEO Tony Fernandes said on Wednesday."At the end of the day, it is go big or go home," said Subhas Menon, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines.
New Indian Express
a day ago
- Science
- New Indian Express
Global aviation agencies moot plan to mitigate risks due to jamming, spoofing
NEW DELHI: To mitigate the risks stemming from Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) interference, commonly known as jamming and spoofing, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have come out with a comprehensive plan. The plan emerged out of a jointly-hosted workshop on the topic of GNSS interference held at Cologne recently. An official release from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said, 'The number of global positioning system (GPS) signal loss events increased by 220% between 2021 and 2024, according to data from the Global Aviation Data Management Flight Data eXchange of IATA. And with continued geopolitical tensions, it is difficult to see this trend reversing in the near term.'
New Straits Times
a day ago
- Business
- New Straits Times
Southeast Asia's budget airlines bet on travel demand, despite competition woes
SEOUL: Southeast Asia's biggest budget airlines are pursuing a bruising capacity expansion race despite rising cost pressures that are squeezing profitability and led Qantas Airways to shut down Singapore-based offshoot Jetstar Asia. Low-cost carriers have proliferated in Asia over the past two decades as disposable incomes rise, supported by robust travel demand from Chinese tourists. Demand for air travel in Asia is expected to grow faster than other regions in the coming decades, and carriers like Vietnam's VietJet Aviation and Malaysia-headquartered AirAsia are set to buy more planes to add to their already large orderbooks as they seek to gain market share. But margins are thinner than in other regions. The International Air Transport Association (IATA), an airline industry body, this year expects Asia-Pacific airlines to make a net profit margin of 1.90 per cent, compared with a global average of 3.70 per cent. Airlines across Asia have largely restored capacity since the pandemic, which has intensified competition, especially for price-sensitive budget travellers, and pulled airfares down from recent high levels. International airfares in Asia dropped 12.00 per cent in 2024 from 2023, ForwardKeys data shows. AirAsia, the region's largest budget carrier, reported a 9.00 per cent decline in average airfares in the first quarter as it added capacity and passed savings from lower fuel prices onto its customers. Adding to challenges for airlines, costs such as labour and airport charges are also rising, while a shortage of new planes is driving up leasing and maintenance fees. This shifting landscape prompted Australia's Qantas to announce last week that its loss-making low-cost intra-Asia subsidiary Jetstar Asia would shut down by the end of July after two decades of operations. Jetstar Asia said it had seen "really high cost increases" at its Singapore base, including double-digit rises in fuel, airport fees, ground handling and security charges. "It is a very thin buffer, and with margins this low, any cost increase can impact an airline's viability," said IATA Asia-Pacific Vice-President Sheldon Hee, adding that operating costs were escalating in the region. Aviation data firm OAG said in a February white paper that Asia-Pacific was the world's most competitive aviation market, with airfares driven down by rapid capacity expansion "perhaps to a point where profits are compromised". "Balancing supply to demand and costs to revenue have never been more critical," the report said of the region's airlines. 'GO BIG OR GO HOME' Southeast Asia has an unusually high concentration of international budget flights. Around two-thirds of international seats within Southeast Asia so far this year were on budget carriers, compared to about one-third of international seats globally, CAPA – Centre for Aviation data shows. Qantas took the option to move Jetstar Asia's aircraft to more cost-efficient operations in Australia and New Zealand rather than continue to lose money, analysts say. Budget operators in Southeast Asia were struggling for profits amid fierce competition even before the pandemic, and now there is the added factor of higher costs, said Asia-based independent aviation analyst Brendan Sobie. Low-cost carriers offer bargain fares by driving operating costs as low as possible. Large fleets of one aircraft type drive efficiencies of scale. Jetstar Asia was much smaller than local rivals, with only 13 aircraft. As of Mar 31, Singapore Airlines' budget offshoot Scoot had 53 planes, AirAsia had 225 and VietJet had 117, including its Thai arm. Low-cost Philippine carrier Cebu Pacific had 99. All four are adding more planes to their fleets this year and further into the future. VietJet on Tuesday signed a provisional deal to buy up to another 150 single-aisle Airbus planes at the Paris Airshow, in a move it said was just the beginning as the airline pursues ambitious growth. The deal comes weeks after it ordered 20 A330neo wide-body planes, alongside an outstanding order for 200 Boeing 737 MAX jets. AirAsia, which has an existing orderbook of at least 350 planes, is also in talks to buy 50 to 70 long-range single-aisle jetliners and 100 regional jets that could allow it to expand to more destinations, its CEO Tony Fernandes said on Wednesday. "At the end of the day, it is go big or go home," said Subhas Menon, Director-General of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines.
