The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) concluded 2023 on a high note, surpassing pre-pandemic flight movements, marking the highest in NAIA’s history.

The passenger volume reached 95 percent of the totals in 2019, the year before the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the aviation market.

The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), which manages NAIA, recorded a total of 279,953 flights in 2023, including 171,605 domestic and 108,348 international flights. This represents a 26 percent increase compared to the 221,595 flights in 2022 and a three percent increase from the 271,535 registered in 2019.

MIAA General Manager Eric Jose Ines expressed satisfaction with the robust flight movements, particularly in domestic operations, stating, “In terms of domestic flights, we’re recording 12 percent more than in 2019. This strong domestic rebound is not only a testament to the resilience of our local aviation industry but also reflects the support of travelers in revitalizing our domestic tourism sector.”

“We have also returned international flight operations to 91 percent of pre-pandemic levels. We are encouraged by the renewed confidence in air travel, reaffirming our collective efforts to steer the aviation sector back to pre-pandemic levels. This is a significant step towards normalcy in global air travel,” Ines added.

Furthermore, MIAA effectively met its yearly forecast, handling 45,385,987 passengers at NAIA, comprising 24,887,157 domestic and 20,498,830 international travelers. This amounts to 47 percent more than the 30,943,105 passengers from the previous year and accounts for 95 percent of the 47,693,203 passengers in total for 2019.

Ines said, “Domestic borders were the first to open up after the COVID-19 restrictions. This has substantially boosted domestic tourism, as it is easier for passengers to travel to domestic destinations compared to international ones. With global borders opening up, international travel is rebounding, and it’s only a matter of time before we reach pre-pandemic levels for international flights and passengers.”

In 2023, December logged the most flights with 25,779, while July had the most passengers with 4,185,555.

Anticipating the continuous revival of the air travel industry, MIAA had implemented measures to better handle the spike in flight movements and passenger volumes.

The four NAIA terminals’ capacity was optimized through initiatives like the Schedule and Terminal Rationalization Assignment (STAR) program, which involved terminal reassignments for select airlines.

Moreover, because of the Airport Integrated Command and Control Center’s (AICCC) effective schedule management, MIAA is able to accommodate more flights, amounting to 800 flights departing from and arriving at NAIA within a 24-hour window.

Further improvements in facilities, infrastructure, equipment, runways, and terminals are expected to accommodate the increasing number of passengers and flights in the coming years, eventually handling up to 62 million passengers per year, with the NAIA Public Private Partnership (PPP) Project currently under bidding. DOTr