HKIA sets new monthly passenger traffic record in April

The Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) reported another record-breaking month in April, with passenger volume rising 8.8 percent year-on-year to 5.8 million, surpassing the previous monthly record made in August last year, the airport said Sunday.

The growth in passenger traffic in April was mainly due to 13 percent year-on-year growth in transfer/transit traffic and 12 percent growth in Hong Kong resident traffic, HKIA said, adding that passenger traffic to or from Southeast Asia and North Asia recorded the most significant increases.

In addition, the aircraft movements increased by 3.1 percent to 33,725, while cargo volume dropped slightly by 0.7 percent compared to the same month last year to 360,000 tons.

Henry Ma, general manager for Market and Connectivity Development of Airport Authority Hong Kong, said AirAsia Zest began operations at HKIA earlier this month, providing four-times- a-week service to Manila, while Etihad Airways will begin operating daily passenger flights to Abu Dhabi from mid-June, both offering greater convenience to travelers.

In addition to further expanding the flight network, HKIA has also recently extended upstream check-in services to Jiuzhou Port in Zhuhai, enhancing multi-modal connectivity throughout the Pearl River Delta (PRD), said Ma.

Passengers can now check in baggage and obtain boarding passes for departing flights at seven PRD ferry ports before they arrive at SkyPier of HKIA, he said.

According to HKIA's data, for the first four months of 2015, passenger volume grew 8.8 percent year-on-year to 22.2 million, and cargo volume added 1.9 percent to 1.4 million tons. Flight movements climbed 4.7 percent to 132,620. Endit