UAE airport traffic gains hint at better times ahead
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Airports in the UAE are reporting their best traffic figures since the downturn a year ago, in a further sign that the global economy may be turning the corner.
Abu Dhabi International Airport announced that passenger numbers increased 10.3 per cent last month compared with the same period a year earlier, while Dubai Airports reported a 12.6 per cent rise, as travellers regained their appetite for international trips, particularly in the economy cabin, and airlines added new routes.
The aviation figures come at a time of encouraging news from the US on the economy, after the American housing industry cheered global stock markets.
"The double-digit increases we’ve seen in the past two months are the direct result of a boost in passenger numbers from Emirates [Airline] and other long-haul network carriers and continual growth in the low-cost sector, said Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports.
The growth in patronage comes as the long-haul airlines based in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, Etihad Airways and Emirates, are investing heavily in winning over international air travel demand between Asia and the West. This has put them in direct competition with carriers such as British Airways and Singapore Airlines, and with growing success, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said.
The growth in the Middle East "reflects the success of Middle Eastern airlines in gaining market share from the direct flights by flying passengers via their hubs", IATA said in a report last week.
The growth marks a steady recovery since February and March, when the airports saw flat to negative growth as demand for air travel among corporations and individuals fell sharply.
Global markets were also recovering to their highest points this year last Friday, when the US National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes last month climbed at the fastest rate in a decade, the same day as the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the prospects for growth in the global economy in the short term were good. The results pushed stocks higher.
The highlight was the "cracking set of home sales from the US", said Jim Wood-Smith, the head of research at London-based Williams de Broe. "It is more fuel on the fire of the bull market."
Meanwhile the air travel market continues to slide globally, but at a slowing rate, the IATA said. International air travel fell 7.1 per cent in June, the latest statistics available, compared with a 9.2 per cent fall in May. According to an IATA survey, a sustained recovery will not come until 2011.
The figures suggest the UAE’s two long-haul airlines that provide most of the traffic at the two key airports, Etihad and Emirates, are continuing to grow their businesses despite a prolonged downturn elsewhere.
With a fleet of 130 wide-bodied aircraft, Emirates is the largest carrier at Dubai International Airport, which is the biggest hub in the Middle East, with 37.4 million travellers using the airport last year.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi International Airport, home to Etihad, was deemed the world’s fastest growing air hub last year by Airports Council International.
Last month’s gains were helped by recent route launches by Etihad, including to Larnaka, Cyprus, Athens and Istanbul, all vital feeder cities for long-haul traffic from Abu Dhabi to Australia.
New airlines also helped stimulate demand, including inaugural services to Berlin and Dusseldorf on Elite Aviation in partnership with Blue Wings. Services to Afghanistan on Safi Airways and other routes by Bahrain Air, Sun Air and Jat Airways were other key factors.
The air cargo business also showed signs of recovery in the UAE. In Dubai, volumes advanced 1.9 per cent last month to 160,289 tonnes, compared with an average global decline of 20 per cent this year.