Hong Kong Airport Ranking Falls to 20th; Not International Aviation Hub Due to Tough ‘Zero-COVID’ Target

Hong Kong International Airport dropped 10 places in the latest ranking of the world’s best airports, falling to 20th, even lower than Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport.

The international air transport rating organization Skytrax released its annual ranking of the world’s best airports. The first is Hamad International Airport in Doha, located in the capital of Qatar, followed by Tokyo’s Haneda International Airport in Japan, and Singapore’s Changi Airport in third place. 

The ranking of Hong Kong International Airport has dropped from 10th place last year to 20th this year, which is lower than Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, which ranks 18th, and lags behind other airports in East Asia, such as Seoul Incheon International Airport in South Korea and Kansai International Airport in Osaka Japan,and Nagoya Chubu International Airport.

After the opening of Hong Kong International Airport in 1998, it has won the Skytrax “World’s Best Airport” award many times, from 2001 to 2005 and 2007 to 2008. The last time this title had been awarded was 2011.

Skytrax has rated Hong Kong International Airport as the “Airport of the Year” for many years, as it serves more than 100 airlines providing flights to about 180 locations around the world. 

Singapore Changi Airport and Hong Kong International Airport have been jockeying for years. 

Hong Kong lost its “Airport of the Year” for many years,while Changi Airport was the best airport in the world from 2013 to 2020.

Hong Kong International Airport has fallen steadily in the rankings of the world’s best airports. 

In 2018, before COVID and Anti-extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement , it ranked 4th, dropped slightly to 5th in 2019, and was still ranked 6th in 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic; however, it has dropped to 10th in 2021, and it has dropped to 20th this year.

Based on the customer satisfaction level of each airport, Skytrax researched the performance of 550 airports around the world and listed the top 100 airports.

Criteria for the rating include passenger terminal comfort, hygiene, design, guidance provided to passengers, queuing time at arrival, waiting time at security check, attitude of airport staff, shopping and dining options available, etc.

Impact of  “Zero-COVID” Target

As the world started to resume after COVID, the travel restrictions were gradually lifted. However, Hong Kong still follows the strict Zero-COVID policy of Mainland China.

The French bank Natixis recently released a research report saying that Hong Kong’s strict arrival restrictions, coupled with negative factors such as the continued outflow of residents, have caused passenger traffic to hover around 2% of the pre-pandemic level, making Hong Kong one of the worst regions in the aviation industry of Asia.

The report stressed that if this situation continues, Hong Kong will lose its competitiveness in the aviation sector. In 2019, Hong Kong International Airport handled 71.5 million passengers, but only 1.4 million in 2021.

Willie Walsh, secretary general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said in early April 2022 that Hong Kong had lost its role as an international aviation hub due to restrictions on inbound flights and strict passenger quarantine measures. 

“Hong Kong’s recovery (in the aviation sector) is seriously lagging behind the rest of the world,” he said bluntly. “Hong Kong has practically disappeared from the aviation map. I think it will be difficult for Hong Kong to recover.”