Dubai Airport Revises 2024 Passenger Traffic Forecast to Record 91.8 Million

Dubai International Airport (DXB) expects to handle a record 91.8 million passengers this year, revising its annual forecast upwards for the second time, amid a strong post-Covid rebound in air traffic from China.

The world's busiest international airport recorded 21.8 million passengers in the second quarter of 2024, up 7.5 per cent compared to the same period last year, state-owned operator Dubai Airports said on Wednesday.

“Strong demand from key source markets such as India and the gradual but certain resurgence of markets such as China, have been instrumental in our success,” Paul Griffiths, chief executive

The airport operator had previously said it expects to handle a total of 91 million passengers this year, surpassing its previous annual traffic record of 89.1 million in 2018, as the city attracts more visitors and the hub’s main airlines Emirates and flydubai continue to expand their route networks.

DXB surpassed its pre-pandemic annual passenger traffic in 2023, handling nearly 87 million passengers – a growth of 31.7 per cent year on year – on rising demand for travel.

China traffic recovery
In the first six months of this year, DXB handled 44.9 million passengers, an 8 per cent year-on-year increase, Dubai Airports said.

Dubai hosted 9.31 million overnight international visitors from January to June this year, up by about 9 per cent annually, helped by the emirate's push to strengthen and expand its tourism sector, according to July data from the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET).

The number of visitors from north-east and south-east Asia grew from an 8 per cent share at the beginning of the year to 10 per cent by the end of the six-month period, driven by a strong recovery from China, data showed.

The UAE's tourism sector is projected to make up 12 per cent of the country's gross domestic product this year, up from 11.7 per cent in 2023, the Emirates News Agency reported in May.

The Arab world’s second-largest economy expanded by 3.6 per cent last year, according to the Central Bank of the UAE.

DXB said that India remained its top destination country in the first half of 2024 with 6.1 million passengers, while traffic from China exceeded one million passengers, representing an 80 per cent year-on-year growth and a 90 per cent recovery compared to 2019 levels.

They were followed by Saudi Arabia with 3.7 million passengers, the UK with 2.9 million and Pakistan with 2.3 million. Other significant markets include the US (1.7 million), Russia (1.3 million) and Germany (1.3 million).

The top three city destinations were London with 1.8 million passengers, Riyadh with 1.6 million and Mumbai with 1.2 million. The total number of flight movements at DXB reached 216,000, a 7.2 per cent increase compared to the first six months of last year.

The average number of passengers per aircraft movement was 213, and the load factor remained steady at 77 per cent compared to the first half of 2023. Direct traffic accounted for 56 per cent of the airport's total, while transfer traffic comprised 44 per cent, Dubai Airports said.