Record MIA arrivals, Ryanair sees 19% growth in passenger movements

Malta International Airport ended 2013 with 12 record months and a total of 4,031,502 passenger movements.

MIA also forecast a growth of 2% for 2014.

The 4 million figure was achieved thanks in part to particularly good results achieved in October and November which saw a combined increase of 17.8% (61,040 additional passengers) over the same months in 2012. August also contributed significantly with an all-time high of half a million passengers.

The numbers translate into 10.5% year-on-year growth, in line with the 10.2% increase in seat capacity that was also achieved due to the new routes registered.

Aircraft movements also went up by 9.1% over last year, while the average seat load factor succeeded in remaining consistent, with a marginal increase of 0.2%.

MIA's airline partners continued to perform well throughout 2013, with Air Malta registering a 6% increase in passenger movements by successfully filling the additional capacity it deployed.

Ryanair improved its performances in the routes they operate, resulting in an increase of 19.3% in passenger movements.

Lufthansa's traffic increased by 27.2%, following the introduction of a second daily flight to Frankfurt and additional frequency to Munich in summer. Good performance was also registered by newly introduced WizzAir and Turkish Airlines.

The UK market achieved the second largest traffic growth, registering an increase of 50,500 passenger movements mainly driven by London, Liverpool and Edinburgh airports, with Gatwick achieving a 4.1% growth in traffic.

Significant growth was also registered in the Italian market, increasing by 17.8% mainly due to the launch of the Bergamo route by Ryanair.

The German market grew by 7.8% which is attributed to an increase in seat capacity mainly driven by Lufthansa on the Frankfurt route.

The French market performed well, recording an increase of 11.5% in passenger movements, half of which were attributed to the new Transavia route from Paris.

The market conditions in Spain were reflected in a slight decrease of passenger movements of 1.7%.

"The outlook for 2014 remains positive. Seat capacity is being forecast to grow by approximately 2.5%, resulting in an estimated throughput of 4.1 million passengers, which translates to a 2% increase in traffic over 2013," MIA CEO Markus Klaushofer said.

"Everyone at Malta International Airport cherishes the fact that we are the first and last impression most visitors to Malta experience. Our work plays a crucial role in the country's effort to expand the tourism industry.

MIA is investing in areas that could result in increased capacity and efficiency across various areas.

In order to cater for higher capacity in peak operational periods, works have commenced to extend the baggage-handling facilities in the check-in area. Meanwhile, works on taxiways are underway to ensure more efficient utilisation of the runway.

In an effort to maximise aircraft parking space as well increase aircraft movement on a daily basis, works on the apron have just been completed.

An expansion of the Terminal, specifically in the Non-Schengen area is aimed towards reducing congestion within this area and improve passenger flows in the Schengen Area.

The airport will also see the introduction of new Liquid Explosive Detectors, in line with EU directives, ensuring new and improved security measures with minimal effect to passengers.

Commenting on the results, tourism minister Karmenu Vella welcomed in particular the strong increases in October and November, saying these showed that efforts to increase business in the shoulder and winter months were bearing fruit.

The minister augured that the forecast for an increase in passengers for 2014 would continue to reap good results and further increase expenditure among all tourism entrepreneurs.

Josef Formosa Gauci, CEO of Malta Tourism Authority, said the record results for 2013 which saw the MIA figures exceed 4 million passengers and the tourism statistics exceed 1.5 million tourist were undoubtedly the result of the work of all stakeholders in the industry, in particular government, Malta International Airport and Malta Tourism Authority.