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Abu Dhabi airport maintains double digit growth in April

ABU DHABI - Abu Dhabi International Airport managed to maintain a double digit growth even in April when much of global aviation industry was passing through challenging times following the disruption in flights due to the volcanic eruption in Iceland.

The airport recorded a passenger traffic of 866,475 in April this year, marking an increase of 10.1 per cent over the corresponding month of 2009, the latest monthly traffic report released by the Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) said on Sunday.

The airport had been experiencing double-digit growth since the start of 2010 and the latest report indicates that the airport’s growth rate is still holding strong.

Aircraft movement increased by 11.1 per cent this April compared to April 2009. Cargo movements through the airport also increased substantially in April, with tonnage handled being up by 21.3 per cent over the same month in 2009.

London, Doha, Bangkok, Manila and Jeddah were the top five city destinations, while the USA was the fastest growing country destination for the month, with a 160 per centincrease in passenger traffic over the same period in 2009. This growth can largely be attributed to the launch of Etihad’s Chicago route and its growing connectivity to the American market through its code share agreement with American Airlines, the report said.

“The volcanic ash cloud that spread from Iceland across Europe during several days in April had led to extraordinary circumstances as it grounded numerous flights to and from the continent. Despite this Abu Dhabi International Airport continued to record double-digit growth, which is a great result. The increases illustrate the strong fundamentals of our economy and the strength of our tourism offering in Abu Dhabi. ADAC will remain focused on enhancing the facilities and services we offer to our passengers, and to attracting new airlines to our airport hub,” the report said quoting Ahmed Al Haddabi, Senior Vice-President of Airport Operations, ADAC, said.

Earlier the figures released by the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) had indicated air traffic movements grew 10.6 per cent in April in the UAE as a whole, bucking setbacks faced by the global aviation industry in the backdrop of the ash clouds.

Air traffic movements reached 52300 in April 2010 in the country, compared with 47300 in the same month last year.

Average growth of UAE air traffic movements in the first four months of 2010 was 11.5 per cent, with a total of 205700 air traffic movements, compared with 184700 air traffic movements during the same period last year. 


ramavarman@khaleejtimes.com