March brought Malta International Airport’s busiest-ever first quarter to a close, during which 1,245,525 passengers walked through the terminal’s doors. Of this total, 487,117 passenger movements were registered in March, marking an increase of two percent over pre-pandemic figures.
This upward trend has been driven by the release of pent-up demand for air travel, which has also been reflected in high seat load factors (SLF) over the past months. Gaining 2.2 percent over 2019 levels, the SLF for March stood at 83.5 percent.
Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Poland were the most popular markets, accounting for 63 percent of March traffic. Out of these top five markets, the United Kingdom and Germany continued to perform below 2019 levels, while the other three markets registered different levels of growth.
A closer look at Germany’s performance shows that, while passenger numbers to and from this market remained below pre-pandemic levels, an improved SLF of 90 percent helped it overtake France to rank third. Malta’s connectivity with Germany will be further strengthened this summer through three routes on top of those offered last winter, which are expected to bolster the performance of this market.
