UAE. Dubai International (DXB) today unveiled what it called “positive strides towards recovery” in the latter half of a turbulent 2020, a pandemic-ravaged year in which passenger numbers slumped by -70% to 25.9 million.
As reported, anchor DXB retailer Dubai Duty Free posted a -65% drop in 2020 revenues to US$697 million from a record high of USS$2.029 billion a year earlier.
The airport’s official annual traffic figures reveal a positive second half of the year, after a difficult second quarter, with December exceeding industry expectations at 2.19 million passengers.
DXB handled 49,603 flight movements during the fourth quarter (-49.8%), bringing the annual total to 183,993 (-51.4%). The average number of customers per flight decreased to 188, down -20.3% year-on-year.
The closing data showed a recovery in many areas, especially the return to services in global markets thanks to the strength of local carriers Emirates and flydubai, and the confidence shown by international airlines returning to the region.
[Click on the YouTube icon to hear a short but uplifting message from Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths]
From a markets and destination perspective, the recovery is strong, Dubai Airports said. DXB now serves 142 destinations (61% recovery) across 80 markets (85% recovery) on 56 airlines (75% recovery). The normalisation of relationships with Israel last September boosted traffic from December by allowing flights to and from the country. Traffic will be further boosted in 2021 by the recent resolution of a bitter three and a half year dispute between Qatar and its regional neighbours Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, which have now restored full ties with Qatar.
[This longer 5-minute video narrated by Paul Griffiths makes for compulsory viewing, offering a deeply insightful, thoughtfully optimistic overview of how Dubai Airports is striving to restore passenger confidence and help shape recovery]
Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths commented, “In the past year we have witnessed the most difficult circumstances the travel industry has ever faced. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been felt not only in our sector, but across the entire world. These DXB passenger traffic figures are reflective of that testing environment, but also come with an element of hope and confidence.
“An integral part of recovery for the travel and tourism industry is rebuilding the confidence of travellers, and one way to do this is through a vaccination programme, similar to what is currently being carried out by the UAE government. This, along with technology that will allow for seamless and contactless travel, will once encourage more people to get on a plane. In addition, we have transformed our DXB and DWC cargo operations. As an intercontinental hub we are well-positioned to support the distribution of vaccines from the countries manufacturing them to the world.
“Looking forward, we are confident of a steady, but optimistic outlook. We are constantly monitoring future schedules and bookings, working with airlines on their plans to return to DXB and new routes to be introduced. This will allow us to ensure we have sufficient capacity and operational capability available to support as the recovery gains pace.”
During the first quarter of 2020, DXB saw 17.8 million customers (-20%) travel through the airport. However, the fall steepened in the second quarter due to the worsening pandemic. For the first time in the 60-year history of what has been for some years the world’s busiest international airport, the month of April saw commercial flights come to an almost entire halt, as directed by the UAE government. Over the subsequent months, some 4,100 specially organised and repatriation flights from DXB and DWC allowed over 500,000 travellers to return to their home countries.
On 23 June, UAE airspace was officially re-opened by the authorities and travel to Dubai for tourism was permitted from 7 July. These regulatory changes had a positive impact on flight movements and passenger figures increased significantly through until the end of the year. The average monthly customer traffic figures in Q3 and Q4 peaked at 1.3 million.
India retained its position as the top destination country for DXB by passenger numbers, with 2020 traffic reaching 4.3 million, followed by the UK with 1.89 million and Pakistan 1.86 million. The top three cities were London (1.15 million customers), Mumbai (772,000) and Delhi (722,000).
Paying tribute to airport commercial partners
Within the airport environment, customer-facing partners in the retail, service, restaurant and beverage areas showed “incredible strength and resilience” through the downturn, DXB said. “As one of the first airports to offer financial support to our partners during 2020, we were able to maintain their business and move quickly to reopen outlets as passenger traffic, and demand, increased. These partnerships were also strengthened, and confidence in the future of DXB was shown through contract extensions with existing companies such as Travelex; new innovation from long-term partners, JCDecaux; and new agreements with leading Dubai hotel group, Jumeirah.”
In addition, the Dubai Health Authority’s ability to react quickly to the fast-changing environment saw COVID-19 PCR test facilities being set up in DXB for arriving customers, making the movement of tourists and returning residents more efficient.
