Airport traffic at an all–time high in August

During August, Malta International Airport welcomed over 18,500 passengers on average every day last August. Traffic reached an all–time high for the month with 585,218 passenger movements. On average this equates to an additional 1,000 passengers going through our terminal every day.

August traffic registered a 6.1% increase over 2014. The average load factor which measures the number of filled seats on every flight, is also on the rise reaching 87% last month compared to 86.5% in August 2014. A significant increase was also noted in the number of aircraft movements and the seat capacity being deployed to Malta International Airport, which grew by 7.6% and 5.6% respectively.

Traffic Variations

Italian routes keep registering a steady growth in passengers, with an 11.9% increase over last year due to growth on the Catania, Linate, and Rome routes. This cements Italy as the second most popular destination after the UK, which holds its position as the airport’s top market. UK passenger numbers were up by 6.1% in August - achieved through increased capacity along five British routes.

Germany and France registered a marginal drop in passenger numbers, decreasing by 1.5% and 0.4% respectively. Germany’s decrease is attributed to fewer flights bound for Munich. Despite increased traffic on the Madrid and Barcelona routes, the Spanish market also dropped by 7.1%, due to the lost capacity from Seville.

Cargo & Mail

In August, the maximum take-off weight (MTOW) increased by 4.8%, while cargo and mail decreased by 4.3%.

Year Round-up

Malta International Airport hosted 3,120,840 passengers this year up until the 31st August, a 6.8% increase in traffic over 2014. Aircraft movements grew by 5% while seat capacity increased by 4.1%. Meanwhile, the seat load factor has also increased considerably reaching 80.7% compared to 78.7% last year.