Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) capped off 2024 on a successful note, achieving its highest passenger traffic since in the fourth quarter of the year since 2019.
According to new figures released by the airport, 11 million passengers passed through its terminals during Q4 of 2024, a 5 % increase on Q4 2023 and 94.4 % of totals in the same period before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019.
Out of those numbers, 4.35 million were international passengers, a 7.4% increase from Q4 of 2023, and representing a 99.1% recovery rate on the previous record quarter in Q4 of 2019.
Among international passengers, visitors from South Korea, India, and the Philippines exceeded its 2019 traffic levels.
In total, 16.3 million international passengers came through Sydney Airport in 2024, representing a 12.1% increase on 2023, while more than 25 million domestic passengers came through during the whole year, bringing a 4.1% increase.
The airport claims that the last quarter of 2024 also saw its best operational performance on record, with 100% of international passengers and 99.9% of domestic passengers clearing security in under 10 minutes.
“41 million passengers is a strong result that reflects the ongoing demand for travel, boosting the almost AU 40 billion ($25.30 billion) contribution we make to the national economy on a yearly basis,” Scott Charlton, Sydney Airport CEO said in a statement.
According to Charlton, the addition of new partners such as Turkish Airlines and Juneyao Air added to the momentum for international travel, especially in the last months of 2024.
“What is really pleasing is our operations in the context of the demand we are seeing. Every quarter we’re directing our resources to the areas that will improve the metrics that matter to passengers,” Charlton added.
