HKIA Records Solid Passenger and Cargo Growth in the First 10 months of 2016

(HONG KONG, 13 November 2016)  –  Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) recorded solid performance in all three major air traffic categories for the first 10 months of 2016. During the period, HKIA welcomed approximately 59 million passengers and registered 343,265 flight movements, representing year-on-year increases of 3.6% and 2% respectively. Cargo throughput grew 1.9% to 3.7 million tonnes compared to previous year.

In October, HKIA handled 420,000 tonnes of cargo, up 7.1% from the same period last year. The strong growth was mainly attributed to the robust 13% year-on-year growth in transshipments. Amongst the key trading regions, traffic to / from Europe and Southeast Asia increased most significantly during the month.

Although Hong Kong resident travel grew 8% year-on-year in October, typhoon Haima disrupted airport operations during the period, which was reflected in mild negative growth of passenger volume of 0.9% at 5.7 million, and flight movements of 0.6% at 34,610 respectively. During the month, passenger traffic to / from Japan and Europe recorded the most significant increase.

Airlines continued to expand their flight services at HKIA. HK Express began offering twice-weekly services to Nha Trang, Vietnam and Chiang Rai, Thailand in November. Hong Kong Airlines started offering daily service to Auckland, New Zealand in the same month.

Henry Ma, General Manager, Airport and Industry Collaboration of Airport Authority Hong Kong said, “We are pleased to see airlines expanding to new destinations and offering more choices to travellers. This additional connectivity will reinforce HKIA’s status as an international aviation hub.”

On a rolling 12-month basis, HKIA handled 70.6 million passengers, up 4.2% compared to the previous year, while flight movements increased 2.2% to 412,665. Cargo throughput rose by 1.3% to 4.4 million tonnes during the past 12 months.