International passenger traffic taking off at Wellington Airport
The new ‘Rock’ international terminal is proving popular at Wellington Airport, with the facility hosting the Capital’s busiest month ever for international passenger numbers last December, beating the previous record by 4.3%.
Over 65,000 passengers travelled through Wellington internationally in December with traffic growth across all Australian destinations. This continues a strong upward trend in international demand since June 2010, with year on year growth averaging 6.6% over that period.
“With double the terminal capacity and a spectacular new facility for travellers to enjoy, we expect further growth in direct flights between Wellington and Australia. Flying direct saves time and Wellingtonians are enjoying making use of their unique and exciting new terminal,” said Wellington Airport CEO, Steven Fitzgerald.
International passenger growth is forecast to continue over the next year with the Air New Zealand and Pacific Blue alliance’s commitment to increase Wellington trans-Tasman capacity, and the delivery of Qantas’ new 737-800 aircraft, which will provide an improvement in onboard facilities and a further increase in available seats.
“The recent results represented the effectiveness of the There's No Place Like Wellington campaign, launched early in 2010,” said Positively Wellington Tourism Chief Executive David Perks.
Wellington Airport’s new terminal development, which doubled processing capacity from 500 to 1000 passengers per hour, arrived in good time. The airport is now reviewing the airport road layout and transport interchange to address peak time congestion issues and ensure that new growth is handled smoothly.
Issued by: Wellington International Airport Limited
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