April Sees 18.8% Increase in Passenger Traffic at Queen Alia International Airport

Airport International Group (AIG), the Jordanian consortium responsible for the rehabilitation, expansion, and operation of the Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA), recently announced its April traffic results. Figures showed passenger numbers surpassing 529,000, an increase of 18.8% compared to April 2011. Aircraft movement witnessed growth of 9.2% with over 5,600 movements in April. The total year-to-date amount of cargo was nearly 30,000 tons at the month’s conclusion, a 7.8% increase over the same period last year.

In terms of year-to-date passenger traffic, more than 1,900,000 passengers have travelled through the QAIA from January 2012 to the end of April, marking a 22.6% increase over the same four month period in 2011. The year-to-date aircraft movement at the conclusion of April was close to 21,000, a 7.3% increase over the same period in 2011.

The net growth of year-to-date passenger traffic – a remarkable 354,667 additional travelers from the previous year - is mainly the result of the recovery from the effects of the Arab Spring and growing traffic to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. 

AIG is investing an estimated US $750 million to construct a landmark new terminal- now 84% complete- which will serve as a source of pride and prosperity for all Jordanians. This new terminal will significantly increase the airport capacity to 9 million passengers and allows for future expansion to 12 million passengers annually. In addition to that, the facility was designed to ensure customer satisfaction through a more spacious duty free area, vastly improved food & beverage services, increased business and VIP lounges, as well as easy passenger access to transit lounge and shopping areas.  

AIG has also spent US $100 million on rehabilitating and improving the existing terminals, to enable them to handle the continuous growth the airport is experiencing. 2011 marked a record high 5.5 million travelers, exceeding the current terminals capacity of 3.5 million passengers annually.