Melbourne Airport breaks August passenger records

20-Sep-2016 More than 2.8 million passengers travelled through Melbourne Airport during August, a 2.5 per cent increase compared to August 2015. International passengers increased by 6.6 per cent year-on-year, to 777,690 international travellers passing through the doors during the month. Domestic passengers grew by 1.0 per cent to 2,024,166 for August, and total passengers increased by 2.5 per cent to 2,801,856 for the month. The latest figures released by Melbourne Airport are the highest ever passenger numbers for the month of August, and follow a 12-month period in which three new airlines were welcomed to Melbourne. Growth continued to be driven by the Asian and US markets with the North East Asia market recording 17.8 per cent growth, the South East Asia market recording 13.3 per cent growth and the USA recording 7.2 per cent. The North East Asia market was dominated by Taiwan (150.3%), Hong Kong (18.9%), China (9.6%) and Japan (9.6%). The South East Asia market was dominated by India (15.1%), Singapore (14.0%), Malaysia (11.2%) and Indonesia (4.9%). Other strong performing markets included Italy (10.5%), France (8.6%), Netherlands (8.6%), Canada (6.9%) and UK (3.7%). Quotes attributable to Lyell Strambi, Melbourne Airport Chief Executive "Victoria has shown yet again what a wonderful destination it is for travellers, with 6.6 per cent growth in international passengers compared to the same time last year." "It's important to recognise the significance of new airlines opening up Melbourne routes - both in terms of bringing international visitors to our wonderful state and city, and providing more travelling options for Victorians in return." "We were delighted to welcome new airlines including Scoot, Xiamen Air and China Airlines, which have all contributed to the record number of passengers who have passed through Melbourne Airport in the past month."