Dubai airport tops pre-pandemic passenger traffic with 87 million travellers in 2023
Dubai International Airport surpassed its pre-coronavirus annual passenger traffic last year and beat its own forecast on the back of a strong performance in the second half of the year.
The airport handled about 87 million passengers in 2023, a growth of 31.7 per cent year on year, as it edged past the 86.4 million recorded in 2019, operator Dubai Airports said on Monday. The figures are also above its last full-year forecast of 86.8 million.
This resulted in a total of 416,405 flight movements in 2023, the highest on record at DXB, and up 21.3 per cent year on year.
“This exceptional performance reflects Dubai's commitment to maintaining its lead as a leading global aviation hub, by continuing to provide smooth connecting flights andRead More : Dubai airport to close northern runway for 45 days from May 9 for upgrades distinguished and innovative services,” Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, chairman of Dubai Airports, wrote on X, on Monday. Passenger traffic in the last three months of 2023 rose 13.8 per cent annually to 22.4 million. December was the busiest month in the fourth quarter with 7.8 million passengers.
However, the airport recorded its highest level of traffic since 2019 in the third quarter of last year, with 23 million travellers.
In 2024, the hub expects to receive 88.8 million passengers, revised from its November forecast of 88.2 million. This would put it within sight of its previous record of 89.1 million in 2018.
Dubai Airports chief executive Paul Griffiths said 2023 was an “exceptional year”.
“Looking ahead, we're renewing our commitment to collectively enhance the airport experience for our all our guests by launching a significant project to expand and refurbish facilities at DXB, to fortify our infrastructure for future growth,” he said.
The airport is currently connected to 262 destinations across 104 countries via 102 international carriers.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, said “this exceptional performance underscores Dubai's emergence as the world’s most popular tourism destination and its pivotal role in global commerce and trade, facilitated by the unmatched connectivity, aviation capacity and logistics infrastructure that has been built steadily over the years”.
Dubai's travel and tourism sector has made a strong rebound from the pandemic-induced slowdown that began in 2020.
The airport's passenger traffic in 2023 is in line with Dubai achieving its best annual tourism performance last year when international arrivals to the emirate increased 19.4 per cent to 17.15 million.
This exceeded the 16.73 million visitors in 2019, according to Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism.
Travel demand has continued to boom despite inflationary pressures, concerns about economic headwinds and risks stemming from geopolitical tension.
In the last quarter of 2023, Dubai hosted a flurry of global events that attracted an influx of international visitors to the city.
These include the Dubai Airshow that began on November 13, the International Civil Aviation Organisation's Conference on Aviation and Alternative Fuels on November 20 and the Cop28 UN climate summit from November 30 to December 13.
India was the top country destination, with traffic totalling 11.9 million passengers last year, Dubai Airports said.
This was followed by Saudi Arabia with 6.7 million passengers and the UK with 5.9 million. Other countries included Pakistan (4.2 million), the US (3.6 million), Russia (2.5 million) and Germany (2.5 million).
London retained its position as the top city destination with 3.7 million passengers, followed by Riyadh with 2.6 million and Mumbai with 2.5 million.
In 2023, Dubai International Airport handled more than 1,8 million tonnes of cargo, down 4.5 per cent compared with the previous year.
Cargo volumes rose 20.4 per cent, year on year, in the fourth quarter to 506,018 tonnes.
The airport handled about 87 million passengers in 2023, a growth of 31.7 per cent year on year, as it edged past the 86.4 million recorded in 2019, operator Dubai Airports said on Monday. The figures are also above its last full-year forecast of 86.8 million.
This resulted in a total of 416,405 flight movements in 2023, the highest on record at DXB, and up 21.3 per cent year on year.
“This exceptional performance reflects Dubai's commitment to maintaining its lead as a leading global aviation hub, by continuing to provide smooth connecting flights and
However, the airport recorded its highest level of traffic since 2019 in the third quarter of last year, with 23 million travellers.
In 2024, the hub expects to receive 88.8 million passengers, revised from its November forecast of 88.2 million. This would put it within sight of its previous record of 89.1 million in 2018.
Dubai Airports chief executive Paul Griffiths said 2023 was an “exceptional year”.
“Looking ahead, we're renewing our commitment to collectively enhance the airport experience for our all our guests by launching a significant project to expand and refurbish facilities at DXB, to fortify our infrastructure for future growth,” he said.
The airport is currently connected to 262 destinations across 104 countries via 102 international carriers.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, said “this exceptional performance underscores Dubai's emergence as the world’s most popular tourism destination and its pivotal role in global commerce and trade, facilitated by the unmatched connectivity, aviation capacity and logistics infrastructure that has been built steadily over the years”.
Dubai's travel and tourism sector has made a strong rebound from the pandemic-induced slowdown that began in 2020.
The airport's passenger traffic in 2023 is in line with Dubai achieving its best annual tourism performance last year when international arrivals to the emirate increased 19.4 per cent to 17.15 million.
This exceeded the 16.73 million visitors in 2019, according to Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism.
Travel demand has continued to boom despite inflationary pressures, concerns about economic headwinds and risks stemming from geopolitical tension.
In the last quarter of 2023, Dubai hosted a flurry of global events that attracted an influx of international visitors to the city.
These include the Dubai Airshow that began on November 13, the International Civil Aviation Organisation's Conference on Aviation and Alternative Fuels on November 20 and the Cop28 UN climate summit from November 30 to December 13.
India was the top country destination, with traffic totalling 11.9 million passengers last year, Dubai Airports said.
This was followed by Saudi Arabia with 6.7 million passengers and the UK with 5.9 million. Other countries included Pakistan (4.2 million), the US (3.6 million), Russia (2.5 million) and Germany (2.5 million).
London retained its position as the top city destination with 3.7 million passengers, followed by Riyadh with 2.6 million and Mumbai with 2.5 million.
In 2023, Dubai International Airport handled more than 1,8 million tonnes of cargo, down 4.5 per cent compared with the previous year.
Cargo volumes rose 20.4 per cent, year on year, in the fourth quarter to 506,018 tonnes.
Source: www.thenationalnews.com
