BIA records outstanding performance in 2024

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain International Airport (BIA) has demonstrated exceptional performance throughout the first eleven months of 2024, with significant increases in passenger traffic, aircraft movements, and air freight, compared to the same period in 2023. According to official data from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, BIA welcomed 8.71 million passengers between January and November 2024, up from 8.01 million during the same period in 2023.

This growth was seen across all passenger categories: arriving passengers increased by 8.7% to 4.36 million, departing passengers rose by 9.8% to 4.35 million, and transit passengers saw an impressive surge of 267.7%, totaling 18,249, up from 4,960 the previous year.

With the recent expansion of the new passenger terminal and plans for a new airport through land reclamation north of Muharraq, BIA now has a capacity to handle up to 14 million passengers annually.

Aircraft movements also saw a 7% increase, with a total of 50,530 flights in the first eleven months of 2024, compared to 47,213 in the same period last year. Arriving flights grew by 7% to 25,460, while departing flights increased by 7.1% to 25,070.

Air freight showed strong growth as well, with total freight volume rising by 16.9% to 364,800 tons, compared to 312,200 tons in the first eleven months of 2023. All freight categories saw substantial increases: inbound freight grew by 17.8% to 120,700 tons, outbound freight rose by 25.5% to 79,200 tons, and transit freight saw a 12.5% increase to 164,900 tons, solidifying Bahrain’s position as a key regional logistics hub.

While November 2024 saw a slight 1% decrease in overall passenger numbers to 729,555 compared to November 2023, air freight saw a notable 24% growth, reaching 37,164 tons, up from 29,940 tons the previous year. This increase was particularly strong in outboun