Mavcom: Malaysia’s air passenger traffic up 19.5 pct to 7.9 mln in April 2024

KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): Malaysia’s air passenger traffic rose 19.5 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to 7.9 million in April 2024, and an eight per cent month-on-month (m-o-m) increase from March 2024, according to the Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM).

In a statement, MAVCOM executive chairman Datuk Seri Saripuddin Kasim said the April 2024 air traffic figures indicate the ongoing recovery in the aviation sector.

“The resurgence of international traffic is a positive sign for the overall health of the global travel and tourism sectors, indicating that consumer confidence in air travel remains robust.

“We anticipate further acceleration in international travel, particularly with the 30-day visa exemption for tourists from China and India,” he said.

MAVCOM said the growth was largely driven by domestic air travel, particularly seasonal travel during the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holiday period, with 3.9 million passengers recorded reflecting a 14.9 per cent increase from March 2024.

Domestic traffic accounted for 49.8 per cent of the total passenger traffic in April 2024, while international traffic experienced a moderate increase of 1.9 per cent m-o-m to 4.0 million passengers.

“Notably, passengers travelling to and from the ASEAN region increased by 4.4 per cent m-o-m to 2.1 million, while non-ASEAN international traffic experienced a slight decrease of 0.7 per cent m-o-m to 1.9 million passengers,” MAVCOM said, adding that international traffic represented 50.2 per cent of the total passenger traffic in April 2024.

It said the cumulative air passenger traffic from January to April 2024 reached 30.5 million, a 17.0 per cent y-o-y increase from 26.1 million passengers recorded over the same period in 2023.

“This growth was predominantly fuelled by a 39.4 per cent increase in international air passenger traffic, which stood at 15.8 million, up from 11.4 million in the first four months of 2023, reflecting the industry’s recovery momentum and the restoration of international routes and frequencies.

“Domestic traffic slightly decreased by 0.4 per cent y-o-y to 14.7 million,” it said.

MAVCOM said domestic and international passenger traffic accounted for 48.1 per cent and 51.9 per cent, respectively, of the total traffic in Malaysia between January to April 2024. — Bernama