KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 11 — A record 96.5 million passengers passed through airports nationwide in 2017.

And last month, passenger frequency at the 39 Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB)-operated airports nationwide recorded 8.99 million people.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, MAHB said international traffic rose 10 per cent to 4.82 million passengers, while domestic traffic reduced 7.5 per cent to 4.17 million passengers.

The Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang handled 5.59 million passengers in December 2017, a growth of 4.5 per cent from 5.35 million passengers recorded in 2016.

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Passenger traffic at KLIA Main Terminal dipped 2.4 per cent  year-on-year to 2.72 million from 2.78 million, which was offset by a 11.8 per cent increase in traffic at klia2 – 2.87 million from 2.57 million.

The MAHB operated Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport’s (SGIA) passenger traffic also recorded a growth of 15.1 per cent for its international and domestic air traffic.

MAHB said this was the second highest increase achieved in the last 20 years.

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It noted that overall international growth in Malaysia was contributed by both local and foreign carriers.

Twenty-two airlines registered double-or-triple-digit increases over 2016 included AirAsia X, Malindo Air, China Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Royal Jordanian, Shanghai Airlines and Xiamen Airlines.

Domestic passenger growth was contributed by AirAsia and Malindo Air, where demand remained consistent based on a high average load of 75.1 per cent — the highest since 2012.

MAHB said KLIA and Kota Kinabalu were among the airports that registered a double-digit growth in passenger movements last year. Other airports that also registered positive growth were Penang, Kuching, Langkawi, Kota Baru, Melaka, Tawau and Bintulu.

KLIA recorded 58.5 million passengers in 2017, up 11.2 per cent over 2016. KLIA’s main terminal handled 10.7 per cent more passengers to 28.2 million compared with 2016, while klia2 handled 30.3 million passengers, a growth of 11.6 per cent over 2016.

On future prospects, MAHB said Malaysia passenger traffic in 2018 is expected to grow at 6.3 per cent, with international and domestic passenger traffic growing at 8.3 per cent and 4.2 per cent respectively.