Muscat airport traffic falls; Salalah sees modest growth
Muscat – The total number of passengers passing through Oman's airports from January to April this year reached 4,701,055, marking a 4.1% drop compared to the same period last year when the figure stood at 4,901,855.
Data from the National Centre for Statistics and Information showed that Muscat International Airport handled 4,222,789 passengers by the end of April, down 4.7% from 4,428,726 a year ago. Flights through Muscat also declined by 8.6% to 29,731, from 32,520 in the same period of 2024.
In contrast, Salalah Airport recorded a 6.8% increase in passenger numbers, reaching 458,394 by April, up from 429,181 last year. However, the total number of flights dipped slightly by 0.2% to 2,974.
Sohar Airport also saw sharp decline both in flight operations and the number of passengers reaching there by air. The number of flights in Suhar dropped by 62.5% to 72 from 192, while passenger numbers plummeted by 98.7% to just 307, compared to 23,842 last year.
Duqm Airport also reported a slight decrease. Flights fell 1.9% to 204, while passengers dropped 2.7% to 19,565, down from 20,106.
At Muscat International Airport, Indian nationals remained the largest group of travellers, with 182,628 passengers recorded till April this year. Omanis were the second most travellers with 101,087, followed by Pakistanis with 47,078 passengers.
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