Fresh booking statistics from the aviation organization IATA show that the recovery for Swedish aviation continues.
Bookings for international flights to Arlanda are almost three times higher compared to the same period last year.
The Stockholm Chamber of Commerce has analyzed new booking data from IATA's Global Agency Pro system regarding the booking situation for scheduled traffic to the country's largest airport. During the first week of August, international bookings for flights to Arlanda were at a level that was almost twice as high as the corresponding week last year.
During the period May Through July, just over 110,000 international flights to Arlanda were booked for August through October. That's three times as many compared to the same period last year.
”"Now we see that the recovery took off during the summer and will continue into the fall. Air travel is not only driven by holidaymakers. It is probably business travel that is increasing, as the vaccination rate in the world increases and the economy recovers," says Carl Bergkvist, business policy expert at the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.
It is a A view shared by Handelsbanken, which on Wednesday presented a fresh economic forecast that exudes optimism about the Swedish economy. A strong recovery is on the cards and pent-up consumption demand for goods and services such as entertainment, travel and clothing points to a strong increase in consumption in the coming year.
Swedbank's new economic forecast also praises the Swedish recovery, which is "steaming along on a broad front." The bank expects the economy to grow by 4.3 percent this year and by 3.6 percent in 2022.
However, Carl Bergkvist sees a long uphill climb for aviation.
”We are still far from the levels we had before the pandemic broke out.”
During the first In the week of August, bookings were only half as many compared to the same week in 2019. The booking situation for flights to Arlanda during September is just over 70 percent lower compared to the same period in 2019.
”"The rapid recovery also means that one should be extremely cautious with decisions to close Bromma Airport. When flights return to previous levels, which could happen relatively soon, Bromma will be needed," says Carl Bergkvist.
Source: di.se
