Macau International Airport Company Limited (CAM) Chairman Simon Chan Weng Hon said yesterday that he expected the facility’s passenger volume and flights movements to increase by more than 20 percent this year compared with last year’s 5.15 million passengers and 42,504 aircraft movements.
According to his forecast, the airport will handle at least 6.2 million passengers this year.
Chan, the former president of the Macau Civil Aviation Authority (AACM), made the forecast in a speech at the 2024 Media New Year Gathering at MGM COTAI yesterday.
Chan pointed out that last year’s passenger volume and aircraft movements represented a 54 percent and 55 percent recovery to the pre-pandemic 2019 levels, respectively.
In 2019, the airport handled a record 9.6 million passengers and 77,581 aircraft movements. Macau confirmed its first COVID-19 case in January 2020. The pandemic severely affected Macau’s civil aviation sector for three years. In 2022, the airport handled a mere 599,185 passengers and 13,642 aircraft movements.
Chan also underlined that the airport maintained steady growth in its cargo volume last year, reaching 63,800 tonnes, a year-on-year increase of 24 percent. He forecast a 9 percent growth in cargo volume this year.
Chan also said that there will be 13 additional charter flights during the upcoming Chinese New Year holiday period, comprising seven flights to the mainland, three to Taipei and one each to Bangkok, Cam Ranh and Phnom Penh.
He also pointed out that business aviation reached 923 flight movements last year, more than double the previous year. He said that he expected the airport’s business aviation flight movements to rise 40 percent this year.
Chan also said that CAM’s total revenue was estimated to have grown by 178 percent year on year to 1.18 billion patacas last year, i.e., 65 percent of its total revenue in pre-pandemic 2019.
Macau International Airport Company Limited (CAM) Executive Committee Chairman Simon Chan Weng Hong addresses his company’s 2024 Media New Year Gathering at MGM COTAI yesterday. – Photo: Maria Cheang Ut Meng
