KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 — Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd's (MAHB) passenger movements for its network of airports continued to grow steadily with 8.3 million movements recorded in October 2022, reaching 71.1 per cent of October 2019 levels.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, MAHB said Malaysia’s traffic recovery contributed significantly to the increase in the group’s total passenger movements in the month, which accounted for 65 per cent of the total number.
The local performance continued to be driven by the progressive relaxation of travel protocols across the region, supported by the airlines’ additional frequencies and the introduction of new routes.
Malaysia traffic recorded more than five million passengers for the second consecutive month (5.4 million passenger movements for October 2022), hitting 63.2 per cent of October 2019 levels.
“International passenger movements recorded 2.1 million passengers, surpassing two million passengers for the first time since March 2020, while the domestic sector registered 3.3 million passenger movements in October 2022,” MAHB said.
Meanwhile, Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport's (SGIA) total passenger movements amounted to 2.9 million passengers in October 2022, trending close to pre-Covid levels and reaching 92.6 per cent in October 2019.
International passenger movements totalled 1.6 million passengers and had been stable above the 1.5 million mark for the past three months.
“Domestic passenger movements registered 1.4 million passengers and was at 74.2 per cent of October 2019,” the airport operator said.
Overall, MAHB recorded 66.5 million passenger movements in the first ten months of 2022, reaching 56.9 per cent of levels during the same corresponding period in 2019.
It said China’s recent announcement to ease its Covid-19 measures provides optimism for the aviation sector, particularly in Asia Pacific, as it signals the republic’s readiness to move towards normalisation gradually and positively.
— Bernama
