Saudi’s passenger air traffic surges to 112mln, exceeds pre-pandemic levels

Aleqtsad. Riyadh

Saudi Arabia has achieved a significant growth in the air travel sector, with the number of passengers and flights in 2023 exceeding pre-pandemic levels.

The kingdom’s airports logged a total of 112 million travellers last year, up by 26% from 2022 and higher than 2019 levels, the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) said on Thursday.

The total number of flights also went up by 16% to 814,995, from 701,290, The kingdom’s air connectivity has likewise expanded, with the number of destinations reaching 148 in 2023.

The growth in passenger traffic has been driven by low-cost carriers, which expanded their domestic market share from 27% to 44%.

The budget airlines’ global market share also doubled from 16% prior to the pandemic to 32% in 2023.

“Saudi Arabia is now more connected to the world than ever before, delivering record double-digit growth in flights and passengers carried during 2023,” said Abdulaziz Al-Duailej, GACA President.