• July traffic surpasses 700,000 mark for first time in airport’s history
• Increase of 12.1% in passenger movements over same month in 2017

July ended with 756,356 passenger movements at Malta International Airport, breaking all previous Malta Airport traffic records and building up to the company’s announcement that it is expecting almost 6.8 million passengers by the end of 2018.

Translating into an increase of 12.1 per cent over the same month last year, July’s total surpassed the previous record held by August 2017 by more than 62,000 passenger movements.

Last month’s upswing in passengers was observed in parallel with an 11.3 per cent increase in aircraft movements and a rise of 11.5 per cent in seat capacity. Malta Airport’s 100-destination summer schedule did in no small part contribute to July’s strong performance.

Moreover, with holiday season in full swing, July hit the highest seat load factor (SLF) for the year so far at 87.1 per cent.

Malta International Airport’s top five markets have remained unchanged since April, with the United Kingdom occupying the top spot followed by Italy, Germany, France and Spain.

While four of the top markets registered growth that ranged between 14.4 per cent and 34.3 per cent, Germany’s passenger movements decreased by 4.3 per cent. This decrease resulted from a reduced schedule by TUI cruises, affecting the cruise and fly passenger traffic throughput.