About 5.3 million passengers travelled through Nigerian airports in the first half of 2021 as against 4.9 million recorded in the first half of 2020.
The figure which represented a 6 percent increase when compared to 4.9 million recorded in 2020, was disclosed by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its recent Air Transportation report for the second quarter of 2021.
According to the report, a total of 5.3 million domestic passengers travelled by air between January and June 2021 (H1 2021). This figure represented a 6 percent increase when compared to 4.9 million recorded in 2020.
It further said the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport Abuja recorded a total of 1.94 million domestic passengers travelled accounting for 36.9 percent of the total passengers in H1. It was followed by the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos State with a total of 1.63 million domestic passengers, accounting for 30.8 percent of the recorded domestic travels in H1 2021.
Furthermore, the report shows that the domestic wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport Abuja and Murtala Muhammed Airport Lagos recorded a total of 3.5 million domestic air passenger travels in the first half of 2021, with both airports jointly accounting for 67.7 percent of the total number of domestic passengers recorded in the period.
Consequently, for foreign movement statistics, arrival in Q1 2021 was 212,977 while passengers’ departure stood at 222,453 in the same quarter. Similarly, second-quarter 2021 recorded 220,171 (arrival) and 232,501 (departure).
“These figures are lower when compared to first quarter 2020 when arrival was reported at 419,849 and departure of 448,273. Second-quarter 2020 was reported at 3,699 (arrival) and 16,163 (departure), ” the report said.
“However, the growth rate of foreign movement of passengers in second quarter 2021 was 5,852.18 per cent (arrival) and 1,338.48 per cent (departure) showing better performance of the sector.”
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