Passenger traffic at Dubai International Airport rose 6.2 per cent year-on-year in the first half of 2014 despite a 26 per cent cut in flight capacity between May and July, Dubai Airports said yesterday.
The airport operator, which expects its busiest days on record until Sunday, said 34.6 million passengers used the airport.
“The first half numbers are impressive given the capacity reductions we put in place to allow us to conduct vital upgrades to both runways at our hub,” said Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports. “However, this slight drag on our usual double-digit growth will be short-lived. The successful completion of the runway refurbishment comes just in time to accommodate the surge in passenger numbers expected with next week’s Eid holiday.”
Dubai International’s two runways became fully operational from Monday.
Ahead of the holiday rush, it has hired extra staff and increased facilities to avoid any possible delays during those days.
Last quarter, Dubai International overtook London Heathrow as the busiest airport in the world, figures from the Airports Council International website show.
Heathrow is due to publish its passenger traffic statistics for the first half of the year today.
“It is a given now that by the end of the first or second quarter of 2015, Dubai International will take the global top spot off London Heathrow as the world’s busiest airport – and stay there for years to come,” said Saj Ahmad, the chief analyst at StrategicAero Research.
“With that in mind, Dubai International looks set to end 2015 by smashing through that coveted 70 million passenger barrier with ease,” he added.
Separately, passenger traffic for June surpassed 5 million for the 18th consecutive month. About 5.06 million passed through the airport, down 8.5 per cent from June 2013.
Region-wise, the strongest growth last month was in the Americas. Passenger traffic to North America grew by 15.3 per cent and to South America by 32 per cent. London remained the busiest city destination in June followed by Kuwait, Mumbai, Doha and Jeddah.
selgazzar@thenational.ae
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