MCIA records growth in air and passenger traffic in 2019

CEBU CITY, Philippines–Passenger and air traffic at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) increased 10.7 percent and 7 percent, respectively, from January 2019 to November 2019. 

These figures covered operations both for domestic and international destinations. 

Based on the recent statistics posted by the Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) on their official website, the number of both international and domestic flights has increased to 97, 927 in 2019 from 91, 496 for the same period in 2018.

The numbers account for an increase at around 7 percent.  

The country’s second busiest airport also saw growth in terms of passenger traffic. 

MCIA reported 11, 454, 086 passengers from January to November 2019, which is 1,102, 496 more compared to the same period in 2018. This accounts for a 10.7 percent increase. 

MCIA is designed to accommodate 16 million passengers per year. This means that the current figures posted by airport authorities is 4.6 million passengers away from achieving the target at this point. 

Domestic-bound passengers and flights largely contribute to the airport’s growth while figures covering international air and passenger traffic saw double-digit in percentage growth. 

A comparative analysis of the the figures posted by MCIAA on their official website.

Domestic

Out of 11,454, 086 passengers recorded, around 7.6 million – or around 66 percent – were bound for domestic destinations. The most number of passengers recorded for 2019 was in May with 795, 079 travellers going in and out of the airport. 

Flights from Cebu to several parts of the country were also up from 68, 139 in 2018 to 72, 059 in 2019. April held the most number of flights for 2019 with 6,905. 

Domestic flights are being operated at MCIA’s recently renovated Terminal 1. 

International

International flights, on the other hand, are being accommodated at the airport’s Terminal 2. 

The number of international passengers increased from 3,439,792 in 2018 to 3,851, 838 in 2019 which, in turn, accounts to an increase of 12 percent. 

Flights from Cebu bound to international destinations were also up by 11 percent – from 23, 303 in 2018 to 25, 868 in 2019. 

Top Destinations from MCIA 

Further data from FlightConnections.com, an online database of all airports worldwide, shows that MCIA currently serves 25 domestic flights from Cebu, and has several direct or non-stop passenger flights to 48 destinations in 10 other countries. 

FlightConnections.com also revealed the Top Destinations – or destinations with the most number of flights – for MCIA. 

With 1,077 flights per month from Cebu, Manila tops the list. It is followed by Seoul in South Korea at second with 401 flights per month, and Davao City at third with 308 flights per month.

Other top destinations include Cagayan De Oro City (234 flights per month); Angeles City (217 flights per month); Iloilo City (206 flights per month); Butuan City (187 flights per month); Busuanga/Coron (155 flights per month); Bacolod City (142 flights per month); Taclobon (137 flights per month); Singapore (132 flights per month); Zamboanga City; (128 flights per month); Busan in South Korea, Caticlan and Del Carmen (124 flights per month); Puerto Princesa (123 flights per month); Taipei in Taiwan (107 flights per month); Hong Kong (105 flights per month); Dumaguete (104 flights per month): Tokyo (92 flights per month); Ozamiz (89 flights per month); and Kalibo (82 flights per month). /bmjo