SWISS Sets Another Passenger Record in 2019

Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS)1 transported 18,781,440 passengers in 2019, a 4.7 percent increase on the previous (record) year. A total of 150,957 flights were operated systemwide, 4.1 percent more than in 2018. Of these, 132,561 (up 4.6 percent) were performed within Europe and 18,396 (up 0.5 percent) were on intercontinental routes.

Total passenger capacity for the year, measured in available seat-kilometres (ASK), showed a 1.8 percent increase on 2018, while total traffic volume, measured in revenue passenger-kilometres (RPK), was up 2.6 percent. On its European network, SWISS raised its ASK capacity by 5.0 percent and saw RPK traffic volume rise by 5.4 percent; on intercontinental routes ASK capacity was increased 0.5 percent while RPK traffic volume rose 1.5 percent. Systemwide seat load factor for 2019 amounted to 84.0 percent, a year-on-year improvement of 0.6 percentage points. Seat load factor for SWISS’s European services was raised 0.3 percentage points to 78.0 percent, while seat load factor for the intercontinental network was increased 0.9 percentage points to 86.6 percent.

Swiss WorldCargo, SWISS’s airfreight division, reports a cargo load factor (by volume) of 74.8 percent for 2019, a 4.1-percentage-point decline from its prior-year level. Total traffic volume, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTK), was 10.7 percent down on the previous year.

In December 2019 SWISS transported 1,430,184 passengers, a 6.2 percent increase on the same month of the previous year. A total of 11,571 flights were operated in the month, 0.8 percent fewer than in December 2018. December passenger capacity was increased by 0.8 percent in ASK terms, while RPK traffic volume for the month was up 3.7 percent. Systemwide seat load factor for December improved accordingly, rising 2.3 percentage points to 82.9 percent.

SWISS will publish its 2019 financial results on March 19, 2020.