MAHB Records 11.2 Mln Passenger Movements In November, Nearing Pre-pandemic Levels

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 18 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) reported a total of 11.2 million passenger movements across its airport network in November 2024, reflecting a robust 16.1 per cent growth compared to November 2023 and reaching 96.7 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, the group said that international passenger movements accounted for 54 per cent of total traffic, exceeding the pre-pandemic traffic share of 48 per cent and saw a 9.1 per cent increase over pre-pandemic levels with six million passengers.

The strong traffic momentum was supported by new airline operations, the introduction of 5 new routes and 42 additional weekly frequencies, it noted.

“The domestic sector was equally buoyant, recording 5.1 million passenger movements, an increase of 10.0 per cent over November 2023, reaching 85.4 per cent of pre-pandemic 2019 levels.” the airport operator said.

Meanwhile, MAHB said airports in Malaysia managed by MAHB handled 7.7 million passenger movements, a 15.8 per cent increase over November 2023, reaching 88.7 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.

The international sector was resilient, recording 4.1 million passengers, driven by new airline operations and the commencement of new routes.

Domestic movements in November 2024 reached 3.6 million passengers, achieving 83.4 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.

MAHB noted that the average load factor for November 2024 was 78.8 per cent, a 5.4 percentage point increase, with airline seat capacity at 82.9 per cent over pre-pandemic levels.

“These encouraging dynamics in air travel reflect an optimistic demand, which is expected to support a positive traffic trajectory for recovery,” it said.

Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (Istanbul SGIA), it noted also continued to thrive, recording double-digit growth of 16.6 per cent in what is traditionally a low month, with 3.5 million passenger movements in November 2024, representing a 20.7 per cent increase over pre-pandemic levels.

"International and domestic passenger movements at both sectors were robust, sustaining high average load factors above 80 per cent with 1.9 million and 1.6 million passengers, reflecting an increase of 24.3 per cent and 8.6 per cent over November 2023, respectively," it added.

-- BERNAMA