Dubai International records largest traffic increase in almost two years

Dubai International recorded an increase of 19.5% in passenger traffic in September, the highest monthly growth rate since October 2007 when passenger numbers jumped 25.9%. It is also the fourth consecutive month of double-digit passenger traffic growth.

The airport handled a total of 3,190,408 passengers in September 2009 compared to 2,699,806 passengers during the corresponding period last year, raising the year to date passenger throughput to 30,068,739 passengers – up 7.9% over 27,852,332 in 2008. With an average monthly throughput of 3.2 million passengers so far this year, and expectations of a sustained growth in traffic during the fourth quarter, Dubai International is on track to break the 40 million passenger mark projected for 2009.

Cargo growth remained stable in September with a modest increase of 2.75%. Dubai Airports Cargo handled 168,334 tonnes of freight in September 2009 compared to 163,836 tonnes during the same period last year. Year-to-date cargo volumes total 1,366,880 tonnes compared to 1,361,358 tonnes in 2008, a marginal increase of 0.4%.

Paul Griffiths, Dubai Airports CEO, said that Dubai International remains the only airport among the top ten airports worldwide in terms of international passenger to show positive growth in every quarter this year. “We’re seeing strong growth across all regions,” said Griffiths. “We’ve seen a 35% increase in passengers travelling to and from Asia, a 21% rise in Western Europe and a 20% upsurge in our largest market, the Indian subcontinent. While many airports worldwide continue to see traffic shrink, in Dubai business is good.”

Griffiths cites the seasonal impact of the Islamic holy month Ramadan and increasing tourist traffic as key factors behind September’s growth. He said: “It’s clear that even during an economic downturn tourists are finding the allure of Dubai hard to resist.

“They are flocking to Dubai in increasing numbers to enjoy the warm weather, visit the many exciting attractions all the while taking advantage of extremely competitive airfares and hotel rates. Those numbers should continue to swell in the months ahead, particularly when the Dubai Airshow opens up on November 15.”

Running from 15 to 19 November at the Airport Expo, Dubai Airshow is the foremost aerospace event in the Middle East and the fastest-growing in the world. The airshow is expected to attract up to 900 exhibitors from nearly 50 countries, plus some 50,000 visitors, a 10% increase over the previous event in 2007.