Passengers are seen at the departure lobby of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in Pasay City. — PHILIPPINE STAR/MIGUEL DE GUZMAN

PASSENGER VOLUME at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) rose 15.82% to 13.03 million in the first quarter, driven mainly by growth in domestic travel.

The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) reported that domestic passenger volume rose 8.32% year on year to 6.90 million in the three months to March. International passenger traffic rose 4.07% to 6.13 million.

In the first three months, MIAA logged 73,098 flights, up 0.84% from a year earlier. 

The passenger traffic tally for the quarter exceeds the pre-pandemic total of 11.62 million in the three months to March 2019.

MIAA said it is expecting passenger volume at the main gateway to grow by up to 30% this year due to booming travel demand.

In 2024, the NAIA logged passenger volume of 50.26 million, up 10.9% and 4.9% higher than the total booked in the last full pre-pandemic year.

A private operator took over operations at NAIA in September, and announced plans for road expansion and curbside enhancements, terminal upgrades, and terminal reassignments.

The NAIA upgrades are expected to boost its capacity to about 62 million passengers per annum from the current 35 million. — Ashley Erika O. Jose

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