After hitting a record high in 2023, Saudi Arabia’s airports saw a 17 percent increase in the number of passengers in the first half (H1) of 2024 to 62 million. The number of flights saw a 12 percent increase to 446,000 while air freight saw a 41 percent increase in volume to 606,000 tons by the end of June.
Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) recently released air traffic statistics revealing significant growth in the number of passengers and flights during H1 of 2024.
Key developments
During the first half of 2024, GACA launched several development projects, including:
- Development and expansion of Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport
- Inauguration of the development and expansion of Al-Ahsa International Airport
- Launch of the new additional international departure terminal at Taif International Airport
- Introduction of the self-driving air taxi experience for the first time during the Hajj season
In addition, the authority granted the first operating permit for building cleaning using drones, illustrating its commitment to enabling safe and innovative advanced air mobility solutions. Moreover, it launched a knowledge-testing center for aviation personnel and the first phase of electronic gates at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.
Aviation sector’s achievements
Saudi Arabia’s aviation sector also saw several achievements in the past six months, including 16 Saudi airports obtaining the Airports Council International (ACI) Airport Service Quality (ASQ) accreditation for 2024. Additionally, Saudi Arabia’s airports continued their progress in ranking among the top 50 airports worldwide, according to Skytrax.
Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah ranked 1st in the Middle East on the Skytrax World Airport Awards. Meanwhile, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah achieved the highest ratings on the Airports Council International list for 2023.
In addition, King Fahd International Airport in Dammam won three of the Saudi Airports Awards for 2023, including the award for the best airport in the category 5-15 million passengers, the award for the best customs inspection area, and the award for the best services for people with disabilities.
Read: World’s 10 largest airports by land area in 2024
Saudi Arabia’s airlines take center stage
Saudi Arabia’s airlines took center stage, capturing several global awards during the first half of 2024. Saudia won awards for being the most advanced airline in the world and having the best economy-class catering for 2024 in the Skytrax global ranking. In addition, Flynas was crowned the fourth-best low-cost airline in the world for the second consecutive year and the first in the Middle East for the seventh consecutive year, the most important global benchmark for measuring airline performance.
The aviation sector’s achievements signal progress on GACA’s initiatives and programs which aim to develop the sector locally, regionally and internationally in line with Saudi Arabia’s National Strategy for the Civil Aviation Sector.
The strategy aims to raise the number of passengers in Saudi Arabia to 330 million, increase air freight capacity to 4.5 million tons, and raise air connectivity to 250 destinations to and from Saudi Arabia’s airports by 2030.
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