NAIA passenger traffic grows 12 percent to 12 million in Q1

MANILA, Philippines — Passenger volume at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) is slowly building up, growing by 12 percent in the first quarter as airlines mounted more flights.

Based on data from NAIA operator Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), the country’s main gateway improved its passenger volume to 12.15 million from January to March, from 10.86 million a year ago.

NAIA also grew its flight movement by nine percent to 70,737, buoyed by the booming demand for air travel globally.

MIAA said international passenger footprint ballooned by a fourth to 5.89 million while domestic passenger traffic rose by two percent to 6.26 million, sustaining its upward trend from 2023.

Similarly, MIAA said the international flight total of the airport went up by 21 percent to 28,478, signaling the recovering confidence of airlines to connect the Philippines abroad. Domestic flight volume also increased by two percent to 42,259.

NAIA is gaining pace in its push to recover to pre-pandemic levels as airlines are mounting new services and additional frequency from the airport.

Before 2023 ended, low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific introduced Manila flights to Da Nang, offering a third destination in Vietnam after Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh.

Further, MIAA brought in Hong Kong carrier Greater Bay Airlines and Malaysian operator Batik Air Malaysia to expand Manila linkages to Asia.

NAIA tallied a record 279,953 flights in the first full year out of the pandemic in 2023. The flight total in 2023 surpassed the pre-pandemic high of 271,535 in 2019.

Apart from this, the airport welcomed 45.39 million passengers last year, up by 47 percent from 30.94 million in 2022. As such, the gateway is close to reaching its 2019 record of 47.69 million, and MIAA is confident that it can make full recovery in 2024.

NAIA will undergo a series of upgrades soon once the New NAIA Infrastructure Corp.—led by San Miguel Corp.—takes over its operations and maintenance on or before Sept. 11.

The consortium bagged the P170.6 billion concession to rehabilitate and upgrade NAIA, and one of its projects for the airport is the construction of a fifth terminal to serve future demand.