Kuwait International Airport prepares for summer season

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KUWAIT CITY, May 13: Preparations for the start of the summer season are in full swing at the Kuwait International Airport, with expectations to witness a great momentum in the number of passengers, reports Al-Qabas daily.

According to reliable sources, more than a million flight tickets have been sold in the country since the beginning of this year.

A recent statistics issued by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) revealed that the total number of airline tickets issued in the country during the first quarter of this year was about 831,000 tickets.

According to the statistics, the number of flight tickets for the month of January was 311 thousand, compared to 257 thousand tickets in February, and 263 thousand tickets in March.

The approved travel and tourism offices in the country is currently 570, which represents 4.5 percent of the total offices in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa.

The International Air Transport Association stated that the total number of airlines operating at Kuwait International Airport is 76.

Regarding the profits of ticket sales, the statistic indicated that the air transport market witnessed a great economic recovery, as profits from ticket sales during the period from January to March was about KD 86 million.

 January was the best-selling month for flight tickets, which amounted to KD 32.8 million, followed by February with KD 27.7 million, and then March with KD 25.5 million.

Meanwhile, sources at the airport affirmed that the work teams are fully prepared to deal with the summer season, which usually witnesses a high density of passengers.

They explained that approvals have been granted to airlines for the summer season in proportion to the capacity of the passenger terminals.

The operating plan for this season depends on making sure to raise the performance of the operational sectors and improve the services provided to travelers, as well as to ensure movement normally without sudden congestion, especially at peak times.

Instructions were issued to regulate vacations during the summer period, as the responsibilities of the agencies operating at the airport increase in the summer season in order to provide means of comfort for travelers, and to facilitate the smooth flow of their departure and return to the country.

All operating bodies at the airport, either airlines or ground service companies, have been instructed to raise the levels of readiness and increase the number of employees to improve the services provided to passengers and raise the operating efficiency during the summer season.

Work teams have been formed from the operational departments to offer assistance and support for other operating organs at the airport, and to overcome all obstacles that may face departing passengers.

Care was taken to develop and improve the services provided to passengers and raise work efficiency in an attempt to accommodate the increase in the number of passengers and users of Kuwait International Airport.

Furthermore, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stated that the passenger traffic to and from Kuwait International Airport increased by 41 percent during the month of April, with the total number of passengers reaching 912,096, compared to 646,774 in the same month last year.

Last week, Deputy Director General of the Department of Aviation Safety, Air Transport and Security Affairs Imad Al-Jalawi told KUNA that the movement of arriving passengers amounted to 354,646 passengers, while the movement of departing passengers amounted to 557,450 passengers during the month of April.

He explained that the movement of aircraft during the same period increased by 29 percent, as the total movement to and from Kuwait International Airport reached 8,983 flights, compared to 6,948 flights in April 2022.

Air cargo traffic decreased by five percent in April, as it reached about 16.5 million kilograms, compared to 17.4 million kilograms during the same period in 2022.

The incoming freight traffic amounted to about 13.3 million kilograms, while the outgoing freight traffic amounted to 3.1 million kilograms last April.

Al-Jalawi revealed that the most requested destinations during this period were Jeddah, Dubai, Cairo, Istanbul and Doha.

Regarding the market movement of airlines in April, he said the share of Kuwait Airways was 29 percent, and Jazeera Airways 26 percent, adding, “As for the rest of the companies, their market share reached 45 percent.”

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