OAG IDs World’s Most Frequently Flown International Route
Asia tops the list when it comes to frequency in flying
The 192-mile route between Kuala-Lumpur and Singapore is now the most frequently flown air route in the world. The 2019 Busiest Routes report compiled by the U.K-based airline intelligence firm, OAG. The short hop between KUL and SIN sees more than 30,000 flights a year flown by eight airlines offering 82 flights a day.
The annual OAG report bases its findings on flight frequencies, not load factors so while the Malaysian route may see fewer passengers per year than other routes, it tops in time tables.
In fact, Asia has 15 of the world’s busiest international routes, and 13 of the world’s busiest domestic routes. The busiest routes in Asia Pacific typically have an average of seven carriers operating on them, unlike the U.S. and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) markets where there are 2 or 3 carriers.
With a flight time of just over an hour, passengers flying between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore can choose between 41 different flights every day, most operated on narrowbody aircraft.
On average Asian routes (domestic and international) operate with seven carriers while in the U.S. and Europe, the average carrier per route is three.
Globally, seven of the Top 10 busiest long-haul routes start or end in the U.S. The busiest international route outside Asia is ranked 8th in the world and is La Guardia (LGA)- Toronto Pearson International (YYZ) route with 17,038 flights annually. The route has the fewest airlines competing of any Top 10.
The second most frequently flown international route in the world is between Hong Kong and Taipei with 28,447 flights followed by CKG-SIN or flights between Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport and Changi in Singapore with 27,046 annual flights.
The busiest domestic route is in Korea with nearly 80,000 annual flights operating between Jeju and Seoul Gimpo. Seven carriers provide over 200 daily flights on this route. The second busiest domestic route is MEL-SYD in Australia with around 148 flights each day.
Eight of the busiest long-haul routes operate within the U.S. eight of the 10 busiest long-haul routes in the world (defined as more than about 2,175 miles) origniate in the U.S. and Canada with New York (JFK) to San Francisco (SFO) on top, followed by the Honolulu (HNL) to Los Angeles (LAX) route and Newark (EWR) to San Francisco.
The popular Los Angeles to San Francisco short-haul flight turns out to be the busiest domestic route in North America and ninth busiest in the world, operating some 35,365 annual flights.
