Airport traffic broke records every month this year and, for the first time ever, September and October reached figures previously only recorded in peak months.
“Our peak summer figures are now spilling into winter, showing a positive change in seasonality,” Malta International Airport CEO Markus Klaushofer said in a statement.
He thanked stakeholders for their constant efforts to boost the industry.
Ten months of records culminated in a five-month streak of exceptional performance with more than 400,000 passengers passing through the airport every month from June to October.
“Up until last year, that figure had not even been reached in June, indicating how rapidly things are changing.
“The traffic registered last month marks an increase of 17.5 per cent over the same period last year, with 409,575 passengers in total,” he said.
MIA saidt hat October’s success was due to growth in all the major markets. Traffic from the UK grew by 2.4, from Germany by 47.7 per cent, from France, Italy and Spain by 29.8 per cent, 21.1 per cent and 15.6 per cent, respectively.
Aircraft movements and seat capacity also increased by 14.8 and 15.2 per cent, respectively in October over the same period last year.
In all, there were over 3.5 million passenger movements so far this year, an increase of 9.9 per cent when compared to the same period last year.
Overview
| 1 Jan – 31 Oct 2013 | % Change* | 1 Oct – 31 Oct 2013 | % Change* | |
| Passenger Movements | 3,567,431 | 9.9% | 409,575 | 17.5% |
| Aircraft Movements | 26,882 | 8.2% | 2,981 | 14.8% |
| Cargo and Mail (in tonnes) | 13,223 | -5.2% | 1,277 | 4.7% |
| Seat Capacity | 4,504,145 | 9.6% | 501,830 | 15.2% |
| Seat Load Factor | 79.2% | 0.2 PPD | 81.6% | 1.5 PPD |
| MTOW (in tonnes) | 2,238,351 | 8.3% | 249,482 | 13.7% |
Top Destinations (by Country)
| Country | 1 Jan – 31 Oct 2013 | % Change* | 1 Oct – 31 Oct 2013 | % Change* |
| United Kingdom | 1,008,346 | 3.4% | 120,548 | 2.4% |
| Italy | 633,087 | 17.5% | 64,108 | 21.1% |
| Germany | 511,601 | 8.3% | 67,801 | 47.7% |
| France | 216,408 | 13.0% | 22,861 | 29.8% |
| Spain and Canary Islands | 159,220 | -2.4% | 15,243 | 15.6% |
Top Destinations (by Airport)
| Airport | 1 Jan – 31 Oct 2013 | % Change* | 1 Oct – 31 Oct 2013 | % Change* |
| London - Gatwick | 230,095 | 4.8% | 26,137 | 2.4% |
| Frankfurt | 216,950 | 16.5% | 31,405 | 56.7% |
| Rome - Fiumicino | 179,374 | 3.8% | 17,295 | 5.5% |
| London - Heathrow | 162,724 | 1.0% | 18,032 | 1.0% |
| Manchester | 145,965 | -0.6% | 16,571 | -9.4% |
*Compared to same period for 2012