Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) saw declines in both passenger traffic and aircraft movements in August, as disruption from anti-government protests had a negative impact on operations.
The airport welcomed six million passengers and 35,655 air traffic movements last month, representing year-on-year declines of 12.4 per cent and 3.5 per cent respectively, according to figures published by Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) today.
The drop in passenger volume was mainly attributable to a decrease in visitor traffic. Passenger traffic to and from mainland China, Southeast Asia and Taiwan experienced significant declines compared to August 2018.
In the first eight months of the year, HKIA saw 50.6 million passengers and 285,495 air traffic movements, up 0.3 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
On a 12-month rolling basis, passenger volume and flight movements grew by 0.4 per cent and 0.3 per cent to 74.8 million and 428,290, respectively.
During the month, airport and flight operations were disrupted by public assemblies at the airport on a number of days. C K Ng, executive director, airport operations of the AA said, “In the past few months, there have been huge challenges to airport operations at times.
“Thanks to the concerted efforts of the airport community, we managed to maintain normal operations and minimise impact on travellers. I would like to express my gratitude to all airport staff who continue to perform their duties with admirable professionalism and dedication.”
