Passengers down four per cent

Passenger movements were down 4.2 per cent in September compared to the same month last year, the Malta International Airport said yesterday.

This results in an average decrease of 8.2 per cent for the first nine months of this year when compared to the corresponding period last year.

The total passenger movements on scheduled and non-scheduled flights in September were 323,851, a decline of 14,214 passengers when compared to September 2008.

Aircraft movements increased by 1.1 per cent and cargo and mail increased by 6.9 per cent.

Passenger traffic for main ­markets, UK and Germany, decreased by 0.7 per cent and 9.5 per cent respectively, while the Italian market registered an increase of 8.1 per cent when compared to September 2008.