Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA) in Jordan received 3,424,461 passengers during the first half of 2016, registering a 5.4 per cent climb compared with the same period last year.

Aircraft movements (ACM) and cargo traffic figures also recorded discernible increases as of the end of June 2016, achieving overall year-to-date (YTD) surges of 5.7 per cent and 6.6 per cent respectively.

For June, which largely coincided with the holy month of Ramadan, Airport International Group (AIG) – the Jordanian company responsible for the rehabilitation, expansion and operation of QAIA, reported the airport’s first decline in monthly passenger figures this year in comparison to 2015. The airport welcomed a total of 551,750 passenger in comparison to 593,006 passengers received in the same month last year, registering a year-on-year decrease of 7 per cent. Following a consistent streak of traffic growth since the beginning of 2016, QAIA registered 6,008 ACM as opposed to 6,124 ACM in June 2015, effecting a 1.9 per cent drop. QAIA also handled 8,727 tons of cargo set against 8,874 tons throughout June of last year for a fall of 1.7 per cent.

“We’re very pleased to have recorded such strong overall traffic growth during H1, despite June’s decline in year-on-year passenger, aircraft movement and cargo traffic results. This was largely due to June’s coinciding with the holy month of Ramadan marking a period when travelling generally tends to slow down,” said Airport International Group CEO, Kjeld Binger. “Nevertheless, we look forward to witnessing a resurgence in traffic statistics in the months to come, especially given the approach of Eid al-Adha, the remainder of the summer holiday.” - TradeArabia News Service