NAIA passenger volume exceeds 8 million in 2 months

MANILA, Philippines — Air travel in the Philippines is showing signs of returning to pre-pandemic levels in 2024, as the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) improved its passenger footprint by 13 percent in the first two months of the year.

Based on data from NAIA operator Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), the gateway increased its passenger traffic to 8.04 million in the two months to February, from 7.14 million a year ago.

Digging deeper into the figures, NAIA observed a 27 percent increase in international passenger volume to 3.91 million as the airport expanded its global reach and welcomed new airlines.

Before 2023 ended, low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific launched Manila flights to Da Nang, adding a third destination in Vietnam after Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh. NAIA also brought in Hong Kong carrier Greater Bay Airlines and Malaysian operator Batik Air Malaysia.

Further, NAIA saw a one percent rise in domestic passenger footprint to 4.13 million. Domestic air travel is expected to pick up further momentum in March, April and May when Filipinos head out of town, particularly to beaches, for the summer season.

Between March 1 and 14, NAIA facilitated the travel of more than 1.85 million passengers, and MIAA expects the number to bloat once the Holy Week data are finalized.

For the Holy Week, MIAA projected that passenger traffic would hit at least 140,000 a day and would exceed the one million mark.

Meanwhile, international flight movements went up by 25 percent to 18,774, but domestic flight volume dipped by one percent to 26,962, according to MIAA.

In 2023, NAIA recorded 279,953 flights, its highest in history, as airlines regained their confidence to mount connections to Manila. The flight total in 2023 exceeded the pre-pandemic high of 271,535 in 2019.

Similarly, NAIA raised its passenger volume by 47 percent to 45.39 million last year, from 30.94 million in 2022. As a result, the main gateway to the Philippines is close to climbing back to the 2019 record of 47.69 million, and MIAA is optimistic that full recovery can materialize this year.

In March, the Department of Transportation signed the P170.6 billion concession to operate and maintain NAIA with the New NAIA Infrastructure Corp. led by San Miguel Corp. (SMC).

Once the turnover is made on or before Sept. 11, MIAA will be relegated into a regulator of NAIA, surrendering the authority to manage the airport to the SMC-led group.