29.1 million passengers in its terminals by 2021. Dubai International Airport (DXB) recovered a little last year, although growth remains disappointing. As elsewhere in the world, air traffic in the Middle East's leading hub has had to cope with successive waves of the pandemic. And above all, the airport was particularly affected by the continued closure of most of Asia and Australia.
The increase in 2021 is quantified by a traffic growth of 12.7%. This growth was boosted by the last three months of the year, when DXB recorded 11.79 million passengers, 77 % more than in the previous quarter.
In 2020, the airport saw a spectacular fall of 70%. Its traffic has fallen from nearly 89 million passengers to 25 million.. Never short of superlatives in their own regard, the airport authorities state that DXB has nevertheless remained the world's busiest airport in terms of international passenger numbers. And this for the eighth consecutive year.
100% operational capacity
Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, says that DXB has shown resilience in the face of the pandemic. The hub hosted the Dubai Airshow 2021, the first major airshow during a pandemic. Last year also saw the return of an operational capacity of 100 % with the reopening of Terminal 1 - Hall D and Hall A.. The authorities have also opened the largest in-house PCR testing laboratory at an airport's Covid-19.
the outlook for 2022 is very promising
" With the reopening of markets such as Australasia and the continued easing of travel regulations around the world, the outlook for 2022 is very promising. We are in an excellent position to continue to lead the global air transport sector on the road to recovery.said Paul Griffiths.
CEO expects 55.1 million passengers this year. However, these forecasts do not take into account the potential impact of the current Russia-Ukraine war. While the UAE continues to allow air traffic to Russia, the collapse of the rouble and a worsening economic situation will have a negative impact on travel. Particularly to Dubai, a very popular destination...
Six countries with more than one million passengers
In detail, India remains the number 1 destination, with 4.2 million passengers expected by 2021. It is followed by Pakistan with 1.8 million, Saudi Arabia with 1.5 million and the United Kingdom with 1.2 million. There were good performances to the United States (1.1 million passengers), Egypt (1 million) and Turkey (945,000). The cities with the highest demand were Istanbul (916,000 passengers), Cairo (905,000), London (814,000) and New Delhi (791,000).
At the moment, 198 destinations in 93 countries are accessible from Dubai. 84 international carriers regularly use the airport. The authorities estimate that by the end of 2023 the airport will have recovered or surpassed its 2019 traffic levels.
