Riyadh: The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) released its 2023 Air Transport Statistics report today, revealing a significant surge in passenger traffic and air cargo movement across the Kingdom.
The number of passengers traveling through Saudi Arabia’s airports reached 112 million in 2023, a remarkable 26% increase over 2022.
International travel witnessed a particularly strong rebound, with passenger numbers jumping 46% year-on-year to reach 61 million in 2023.
Domestic travel also saw healthy growth, with 51 million passengers in 2023, a 9% increase over 2022.
The report highlighted a corresponding rise in flight activity, with international flights reaching approximately 394,000 in 2023, a 36% increase over 2022.
Domestic flights also saw a slight rise, reaching 421,000 flights in 2023, a 2% year-on-year increase.
Air freight movement also saw positive growth, with a total cargo quantity of 918,000 tons in 2023, a 7% increase over the previous year. December saw the highest recorded cargo v
olume, reaching 93,000 tons.
The report showed significant improvement in Saudi Arabia’s international air connectivity. The Kingdom climbed nine places in global rankings, reaching 18th place in 2023 compared to 2019.
This positive trend is further reflected in the number of destinations accessible from Saudi airports, which reached 148 in 2023, a 47% increase from the previous year.
The report also detailed the total passenger capacity across all Saudi airports, which has reached 116 million passengers annually.
King Abdulaziz International Airport topped the list with a capacity of 45 million passengers annually, followed by King Khalid International Airport at 37 million and King Fahad International Airport at 13 million.
Source: Saudi Press Agency
