Muscat: The number of passengers at Muscat International and Salalah Airports increased by 16.7 per cent and 27 per cent respectively by the end of 2017, compared with 2016.
The total number of passengers of these two airports reached 15,562,886, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
The statistics released by the NCSI said that the number of passengers at Muscat International Airport, including transfer and transit, stood at 14,034,865 by the end of last December 2017 compared with 12,031,496 passengers by the end of December 2016.
The number of flights was 114,258 by the end of December 2017, constituting an 10.6 per cent increase compared with 103,326 flights by the end of 2016. The number of international flights at Muscat International Airport, by the end of December 2017, stood at 102,148, which is an increase of 8.9 per cent over 93,822 flights by the end of 2016, on which 12,824,294 passengers travelled, representing a growth of 16.5 per cent.
According to these statistics, the domestic flights at Muscat International Airport increased by 27.4 per cent to reach 12,110 by the end of December 2017, from 9,504 domestic flights by the end of 2016. The number of passengers stood at 1,210,571 from 1,023184 passengers, constituting a growth of 18.3 per cent during this period.
According to NCSI, the number of transfer and transit passengers at Salalah Airport reached 1,528,021 by the end of 2017 from 1,198,596 passengers by the end of 2016. The total number of flights at this airport reached 14,444 by the end of 2017, which is an increase of 42.3 per cent over 10,148 flights of 2016.
The total number of international flights at Salalah Airport reached 5,611 by the end of 2017, with 579,041 passengers, compared with 4,474 international flights and 431,271 passengers by the end of 2016, an increase of 25.4 per cent in flights and 34.3 per cent in passengers.
The number of domestic flights through Salalah Airport reached 8,833 by the end of 2017, with 948,980 passengers, compared with 5,674 flights by the end of 2016, with 767,325 passengers, a 55.7 per cent increase in flights and 23.7 per cent passengers.