Oman: Passenger arrivals up 94%, departures up 113% at airports

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Muscat – The number of passengers arriving at Oman’s airports increased 94 per cent in February this year compared to the same period of 2022.

Data released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) shows the number of departing passengers also increased 113 per cent year on year in February 2023.

The number of international flights (arrivals and departures) from airports in Muscat, Salalah and Sohar went up 112.4 per cent to 14,250 in February 2023, compared to 6,708 in the same period in 2022.

The total number of arrivals, departures and transit passengers was 2,231,451 in February this year.

NCSI figures indicate that the number of arriving and departing flights (international and domestic) through Muscat International Airport increased 102.3 per cent to 14,602 – carrying 2,004,924 passengers, up 117.2 per cent – in February 2023.

Salalah Airport recorded a 38.9 per cent increase in the number of international and domestic flights to 1,482 – carrying 210,865 passengers, up 43 per cent – in February this year.

Sixty international flights – carrying 4,277 passengers – arrived and departed from Sohar Airport in February 2023.

In the NCSI stats on nationality of travellers through Muscat International Airport, Indians topped the list of departing and arriving passengers (123,130), followed by people from Bangladesh (44,233) and Pakistan (37,130) in February.

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Middle Eastern airlines’ January traffic rose 97.7 per cent compared to January a year ago. Capacity increased 45.9 per cent and load factor climbed 20.8 percentage points to 79.2 per cent.

International traffic increased 104 per cent compared to January 2022 with all markets recording strong growth, led by carriers in the Asia-Pacific region, IATA stated.

“Air travel demand is off to a very healthy start in 2023. The rapid removal of COVID-19 restrictions for Chinese domestic and international travel bodes well for the continued strong industry recovery from the pandemic throughout the year. And, importantly, we have not seen the many economic and geopolitical uncertainties of the day dampening demand for travel,” said Willie Walsh, Director General of IATA.

In its Global Fleet and MRO Market Forecast 2023-2033, global management consulting firm Oliver Wyman noted that the Middle East remains among the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world, with the regional fleet set to expand 5.1 per cent annually over the next decade.