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Abu Dhabi Int'l Airport Passenger Traffic up 7.5%

ABU DHABI — Defying the recession-induced slowdown that the aviation industry is facing globally, Abu Dhabi International Airport has recorded an impressive 7.5 per growth in passenger traffic in the first nine months of this year, over the same period last year.

The airport had a traffic of 7,74,251 passengers up to September 30 this year, while the figure was 6,671, 245 in the same period last year.

There was an increase of two per cent in the cargo handled at the airport in the first nine months over the corresponding figures of last year, while the aircraft movements were up by 8.3 per cent this year.

The airport has posted a 6.8 per cent increase in passenger traffic in September alone, over the same month last year, the Abu Dhabi Airport Company, or ADAC, said in a Press release here 
on Monday.

The release said the figures were released by John Stent, Acting-Chief Executive Officer of ADAC during a presentation at the World Annual General Assembly of the Airport Council International or ACI, which opened in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.

Passenger traffic showed a 6.4 per cent rise in the third quarter alone this year compared to the third quarter in 2008. The airport had recorded an increase of 8.1 per cent in passenger traffic in the first six months of this year over the corresponding period of last year. “Abu Dhabi International Airport has maintained consistent traffic growth, throughout the global downturn, which is testament to the robust network and frequency expansion of Etihad Airways, as well as a continuing number of airline operators commencing operations to and from Abu Dhabi,” John said.

“To date, we have already welcomed seven new carriers, in 2009, and with Malaysia’s Air Asia X becoming the eighth to start operations to Abu Dhabi later this month, we can be nothing short of pleased with the way the airport has maintained solid growth, despite difficult times for the industry globally,” John said.

ADAC which is the largest airport operator in the UAE is undertaking $6.8 billion worth of development at the Abu Dhabi International Airport.

· ramavarman@khaleejtimes.ae