Abu Dhabi airport passenger traffic growth slows
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Abu Dhabi International Airport has released its traffic figures for February 2009, showing a passenger number increase of 6%, while aircraft movements went up by 4.9%. Passenger numbers to India rose by 36.4%, while numbers to Pakistan increased by 14.6%.
The growth in passenger numbers at Abu Dhabi International Airport continued to slow last month as the global economic downturn curtails demand for international air travel. Strong gains in passenger traffic between Abu Dhabi and India and Pakistan helped what might have otherwise been flat results, however, while Air Cargo contracted slightly.
The airport is still faring better than other international airports, where passenger numbers are dropping significantly.
Air Cargo at Abu Dhabi fell by 2.1 per cent, to 26,758 tonnes while passenger traffic rose 6 per cent from February last year to 685,508, according to the Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC).
The Abu Dhabi International Airport had a record year last year, handling 9 million passengers, a 30 per cent rise from 2007. Recent results indicate the effects of the global slowdown, with passenger numbers growing by 12 per cent in December, 10 per cent in January and 6 per cent last month.
Mohammed al Bulooki, the vice president of airline marketing and aeronautical revenue at ADAC, said the slowing numbers aligned with forecasts but he expected Abu Dhabi to surpass the regional average of 4 per cent growth for the year.
"During this difficult time we are still positive about receiving new airlines into this airport," he said.
Of the world’s 30 largest airports, 25 reported declining passenger traffic last year, according to Airports Council International. Only Dubai International Airport, Beijing, London, Shanghai and Kuala Lumpur reported positive growth.
Etihad Airways is the largest customer at Abu Dhabi International Airport and said it expected to increase passenger traffic by 15 per cent this year. It also plans to expand its capacity by 18 per cent as it launches six new routes and takes delivery of 11 aircraft.
Etihad and three other airlines currently service flights between Abu Dhabi and India, which saw a 36.4 per cent rise in passenger numbers last month. Flights to Pakistan also bucked global trends with traffic up 14.6 per cent.
The UK, Abu Dhabi’s third-largest international market, increased 5.1 per cent in passenger traffic while Saudi Arabia rose 10.2 per cent.
ADAC said the top five destinations from Abu Dhabi were Doha, London, Bangkok, Cairo and Bahrain, and accounted for 17.2 per cent of all traffic.