Over 6 million annual passengers bring a constant buzz to Malta International Airport, but probably not many are aware that the airport campus is also home to some 300,000 buzzing bees. While these resident bees are indigenous, of the subspecies Apis mellifera ruttneri, the airport’s passengers are more international, having around 106 different nationalities.

Diverse as their nationalities may be, some passengers share a common absent-mindedness. Around 800 items are lost at Malta International Airport every year, with passengers even forgetting behind belongings such as 65-inch TV screens and expensive drones. The majority however do get in touch with the airport to enquire about whether the lost item would have been found.

The team, in fact, answer around 4,600 yearly online queries that vary as much as “Have you found my three-year-old’s favourite soft toy?” and “Can I carry rats’ brains in my luggage for research I’m conducting abroad?” Such questions make one wonder what other strange items hide in the 12,248 pieces of luggage that are, on average, processed every day in the summer months.

While many passengers kill time by connecting to the free Wi-Fi and getting an update on the day’s happenings online, others still rely on printed newspapers. In fact, around 290 newspapers are sold daily by the different airport outlets.

Whatever their preference for news digest may be, it is quite clear that travelers love chocolate! This may come as no surprise, but would you have guessed that, last year, the airport Dufry store alone sold over 671,000 bars?

The 773,580 coffees sold by the airport Costa outlets in 2017, suggest that getting a caffeine fix is an integral part of people’s travel rituals.  Smoothies also get their fair share of love, with the eatery Dr Juice reporting that around 13,520 kilos of fruit go through its blenders every year to produce only the freshest smoothies for passengers and airport visitors who seek healthy alternatives.

This seemingly random collection of figures was put together to celebrate World Statistics Day on the 20th of October, and the very important work carried out by the airport team’s number crunchers throughout the year.