Abu Dhabi airport sees passenger numbers rise 8%

Abu Dhabi Airport saw passenger numbers rise by almost eight percent in March this year compared with the same month in 2008, according to new data released on Saturday.

On average 24,833 passengers used the airport on a daily basis, with London taking the top position as Abu Dhabi’s busiest route, according to figures relased by Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) .

Doha was the second most popular destination, followed by Bangkok, Cairo and Bahrain, which is expected to see increased numbers of travellers with the arrival of Bahrain Air at the airport on March 30.

The surge in travellers goes against wider reports in the aviation industry the Middle East that the travel industry is slowing down , with uop to 50 percent fewer advanced bookings, as a result of the economic downturn.

Meanwhile, the Indian subcontinent saw the strongest growth, driven by Etihad’s growing capacity to South India and increased weekly frequencies.  

Traffic to and from India increased by 32 percent, while Pakistan traffic grew 12.7 per cent, making them the largest, and second largest markets, respectively.

Strong traffic growth was also registered for Lebanon, up 20.7 per cent.  

“We are happy to say our passenger figures are still growing. Naturally, attracting new airlines contributes to this growth, however we believe the excitement and interest in Abu Dhabi that exists within international markets drives a large part of the growth," said Mohammed Al Bulooki, vice president of airline marketing and aeronautical revenue.

“With many exciting new developments to look forward to and with the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority predicting an increase in capacity for tourism, with 4,000 new hotel rooms coming online in 2009, we expect Abu Dhabi’s popularity as a destination for commerce and tourism to continue to increase,” he added.

Mail volumes increased by a massive 39.9 per cent, led by the increase in mail volume to the USA and Australia, and cargo movements made a modest increase of two per cent in March, showed the ADAC data. 

READERS' COMMENTS

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM