The United Kingdom’s Popularity Remains Unrivalled Among Choice Of 86 Destinations
October marked the end of summer for the aviation industry, with Malta International Airport welcoming inaugural flights from Gothenburg and Palma de Mallorca on the last weekend of the month.
Together with three weekly flights to Tirana in Albania launched earlier in October, the new additions not only expand the choice of destinations for locals in the off-peak season but also align with Malta International Airport’s efforts to maintain solid year-round connectivity.
While the airport’s new schedule features flights to 86 destinations, the United Kingdom retained its unrivalled popularity in October, accounting for a fifth of the 978,445 passenger movements registered during the month.
Despite registering modest growth of 1.0 per cent over 2024, Italy was October’s second best-performing market. Fiumicino in Rome and Fontanarossa in Catania, both of which are served by daily flights, were the most popular Italian airports.
Coming in third, Germany accounted for just over 84,000 passenger movements, with the airports in Munich and Frankfurt being the top drivers of traffic within this market. Poland was October’s fastest-growing market, recording a 60.6 per cent increase over 2024 and ranking fourth, while France rounded out the top five markets.
Despite a 17.3% increase in seat capacity compared to 2024, October’s seat load factor (SLF) remained robust at 86.1%, underscoring strong travel demand throughout the month.
As the industry transitions into winter, the European Travel Commission’s recently published insights into Europeans’ travel sentiment reveal that the popularity of Mediterranean destinations has grown by 7% compared to last year. Moreover, pleasant and stable weather has become a more determining factor influencing Europeans’ choice of holiday destinations during the off-peak months.
Both trends bode well for the upcoming season at Malta International Airport, supporting ongoing efforts by the local authorities to secure steady traffic throughout the winter months.