The FINANCIAL — According to Gulfnews, Abu Dhabi International Airport handled a record 9.02 million passengers last year, 30.2 per cent more than in 2007, the Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) said in a statement on January 18.
"Our target for 2009 will be announced in February," ADAC's director of Marketing and Communications Mohammad Al Bulooki told Gulf News.
In 2007, the airport handled 6.9 million passengers.
In December 2008, the passenger traffic handled by the Abu Dhabi international airport showed a 12.1 per cent increase, year-on-year.
"Cargo in the last month of 2008 saw a slight decline over December figures last year but overall cargo figures, for the full 12 months, saw a steady 12.2 per cent increase – a total of 353,820 tonnes (arrival and departure cargo only) handled," ADAC said.
Aircraft movements at the Abu Dhabi international airport saw a 13.2 per cent increase to 93,163 in 2008 from 82,287 in 2007, ADAC added.
"We are grateful for the ever increasing number of passengers who, quite clearly, are looking to Abu Dhabi as an airport of choice in the UAE and the region. In achieving this milestone Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the UAE, must be recognised for the commitment the airline is making to increasing connectivity and frequencies to and from the UAE capital," Khalifa Al Mazroui, ADAC's chairman was quoted in the statement as saying.
"In addition, I would like to thank the increasing number of partner airlines that are continuing to choose Abu Dhabi as a regional and international hub together with our longstanding customer airlines, particularly those who have increased their services to Abu Dhabi and have been improving their connectivity," Al Mazroui added.
Over the next few weeks, the Abu Dhabi international airport's passenger handling capacity is set to rise to 12 million passengers per year with the airport's new Terminal 3 becoming fully operational, said ADAC.
ADAC is aiming to upgrade the 1982-built Abu Dhabi international airport to handle more than 40 million passengers and 2.5 million tonnes of cargo annually, a nearly five-fold increase over its current capacity.
The airport is being transformed into a world-class facility able to handle 20 million passengers and 1 million tonnes of cargo by the end of 2010.
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