Only 250,000 passengers travelled through airport in August

Just over 250,000 passengers travelled through Malta International Airport (MIA) in August, down by over 69% when compared to the same period last year. 

In August 2019, MIA saw over 800,000 passengers pass through the airport. 

MIA said that since the reopening of commercial flights on 1 July, the first two weeks of August were the busiest in terms of the number of passengers handled.

A total of 459,440 seats were available on flights operated to and from Malta throughout August, with a seat load factor for the month standing at 54.9%.

MIA’s top markets for the month were Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Poland, accounting for 169,804 of August’s total passenger traffic.

While August saw 99,204 more passengers than July, the introduction of Malta’s amber list together with various restrictions announced by other countries led to a weaker passenger traffic performance in the second half of the month.

The airport said that aviation and travel organisations, such as Airports Council International, have appealed for a more harmonised approach when it comes to quarantine measures and restrictions across countries, which they said would help restore traveller confidence and contribute to the industry’s recovery.

According to the economic analysis bulletin published on 31 August, Airports Council International reported that the airport industry is anticipating a decrease of 58.4% in traffic when compared to 2019, which equates to a loss of 5.6 billion passengers for the year.