S'pore, HK set to announce May 26 start for travel bubble: Sources

HONG KONG • Hong Kong and Singapore may announce as soon as today a start to their highly anticipated two-way air travel bubble from May 26, according to people familiar with the matter, after multiple delays.

Flights under the agreement - which allows people to travel quarantine free between the financial hubs - will begin from May 26, said the people, who asked not to be identified as they are not authorised to speak publicly.

The number of flights will be increased by June 26 if there are no further outbreaks in either city, one of them said.

Hong Kong and Singapore have been working on a travel corridor for months, after plans for a November start were shelved due to a virus flare-up in Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong government said a discussion with Singapore on the re-launch "is at an advanced stage and the government will make an announcement as soon as practicable".

Singapore's Transport Ministry referred Bloomberg News to its most recent press release on the matter. The ministry said last Thursday that the two cities have been in close consultations on the travel arrangement.

"We have not fixed a date to announce the resumption of the bubble, but will do so once we are ready, hopefully very soon," the ministry's spokesman added.

The comments came after media reports said Singapore and Hong Kong had called off plans last Thursday to announce the air travel bubble.

Under previous travel bubble plans, flights will be operated by Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways. The two airlines have been hammered by Covid-19 as they do not have domestic markets to compensate for a near-total collapse in international travel.

Latest data shows Cathay flew just 598 passengers a day on average last month to only 18 destinations. Singapore Airlines' numbers are also just a tiny fraction of pre-pandemic levels.

BLOOMBERG