Passenger traffic at airports hits 29.5 million in two months

ISTANBUL

Some 29.5 million passengers went through Türkiye’s airports in January-February, pointing to a 16.2 percent increase from the same period of 2023.

The international passenger tally rose 17 percent year-on-year to 15.2 million in the first two months of the year, while domestic passengers increased by 15.5 percent to 14.3 million, according to data from the General Directorate of State Airports Authority (DHMİ).

Istanbul’s mega airport welcomed 11.8 million passengers, up 9 percent from January-February last year, with international travelers rising 12 percent to 9.35 million. Some 2.4 million domestic passengers used Istanbul Airport during the same period, marking a 1 percent increase from a year earlier.

Sabiha Gökçen Airport, also in Istanbul, saw a 22 percent increase in total passenger traffic to 6.3 million. The number of international passengers grew 25 percent to 3.4 million, while the annual increase in domestic passenger traffic at the airport was 18 percent to 2.93 million.

Commercial plane traffic at the country’s airports increased by 11.7 percent to 186,661 with international traffic rising 14.7 percent to 97,717, DHMİ said.

Some 301,220 tons of cargo were handled at the airports, marking a 32.7 percent increase from January-February last year.

In February alone, the country’s airports welcomed a total of 14.8 million passengers, up nearly 26 percent from a year ago, including 7.2 million domestic and 7.5 million international passengers.

Plane traffic grew 10.4 percent to 154,308 last month compared to February 2023, according to the numbers from the airports authority.