A Polish woman who arrived in Malta on a flight from Rome this morning was welcomed with gifts at Malta International Airport after being picked as the four millionth passenger to use MIA this year.

She was greeted by Tourism Minister Karmenu Vella and MIA Chief Commercial Officer Alan Borg, this being the first time that MIA had handled so many passengers in a single year.

The figure is equivalent to 10 times the population of Malta or almost half of London’s population passing through the airport in one year, MIA pointed out.

Passenger traffic this year is 10 per cent higher than last year, making Malta’s airport the fastest growing European airport in its class, MIA added.

“Considering the fact that we first reached three million passengers in December 2008, things have changed very quickly in just five years,” said CEO Markus Klaushofer.

"This year gave us immensely positive results, with record figures hit every single month,” he added.

Mr Vella expressed his satisfaction for the record. He congratulated MIA and thanked all stakeholders involved in the tourism industry for working hand-in-hand throughout the past months.

“This year will be remembered as a truly positive one in the tourism industry, with exceptional results not only in numbers but also in the amount of bed nights and expenditure,” he said, auguring that 2014 would be another successful year.