Dubai Airports Corporation announced on Tuesday that the primary Dubai Airport witnessed a significant 49% increase in passenger movement during the first half (H1) of 2023, reaching 41.6 million passengers.
These figures surpass levels recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Furthermore, the organization running the airport noted that the second quarter alone accounted for a recovery slightly above 100% of the passenger numbers from the first half of 2019.
The total number of travelers during this quarter escalated by around 43% from the same period in 2022, standing at 20.3 million passengers.
Following the pandemic, Dubai, a vital hub for tourism and commerce in the Middle East, reopened swiftly. This rapid reopening, combined with the influx of Russians, professionals, relaxed social norms and eased visa requirements, played a pivotal role in bolstering the economic recovery.
Paul Griffith, the Chief Executive of Dubai Airports, commented: “We’ve revised our projections for the current year, upgrading from 83.6 million to 85 million passengers. This figure is just 1.6% shy of the annual passenger traffic recorded at Dubai International Airport in 2019.”
He added: “The latter half of the year started robustly, with a noticeable spike in passenger traffic in July, coinciding with the peak back-to-school season in August. We are gearing up for an exceptionally active period stretching to the end of the year.”
In a February report, Dubai Airports highlighted that the passenger traffic through Dubai International Airport – the world’s busiest – reached 66.1 million passengers last year.
Moreover, the number of flights operating through Dubai International Airport reached 201,800 in the first half of the current year, marking an impressive annual increase of 30.2%.
