Aeroflot domestic passengers back to normal numbers

RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS - In Brief 23 Sep 2020 by Alex Teddy

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On September 21 Aeroflot published data showing that their domestic passenger numbers in August 2020 were almost as high as in August 2019. That was 3.6 million. Russia's national airline still has far fewer international passengers than is usual for the time of year. It is 90% down YoY. As borders were mostly closed, Russians mostly took vacations in Russia.In July 2020 passenger numbers were 20% down YoY.Sochi, in particular, benefited. It had 5 times more passengers in July 2020 than in June. Its July figures were 13% up YoY. Tourists have also been staying longer than usual and spending more. They have saved on expensive foreign flights. Russian resorts are cheaper than their foreign equivalents. USD 33 billion extra has been kept inside Russia by the impossibility of most foreign vacations. That is 2% of GDP. The downside is that Russia has hosted virtually no foreign tourists since March.Aeroflot has lost over 30% of its value since March 2020. It lost USD 500 million in Q2. The state-owned airline wants aid from the sovereign wealth fund and private investors. A secondary share offering is mooted. This could bring in USD 1 billion: so says an optimistic estimate.