AUSTRALIA. International passenger numbers at Perth International Airport grew by +7.9% in January, compared to the same month a year earlier, the company said today.
In the financial year to date (seven months to January), Perth Airport has handled 1.5 million international passengers, up by a robust +4.5% on a year ago.
Domestic and regional passenger numbers were up by +5.3% on January 2008 and up by +8.9% for the financial year to date to 4.2 million passengers.
Perth Airport Chief Executive Officer Brad Geatches said Perth has benefited from a range of new services in recent months, which was being reflected in the solid passenger numbers.
“The increase in low cost carriers operating services to Perth has meant Western Australians have had the opportunity to take advantage of lower airfares,” he said.
“AirAsia X, the newest low-cost carrier to commence services to Perth has six daily services to Kuala Lumpur connecting to a wide range of destinations in Asia (and to London in March). Both Jetstar and Virgin Blue now fly direct to Bali, complementing the long standing Garuda services. These South East Asian destinations are very popular with the Western Australian market.
“We’ve also experienced strong growth in services operating to China as Cathay Pacific introduced daily services to Hong Kong as a result of increased passenger figures.
“The number of visitors to Perth from South Africa has also grown, resulting in South African Airways introducing new and larger aircraft with A340-200’s,” Geatches said.
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