Riyadh’s traffic and commercial revenue back to pre-COVID levels
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King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has announced that its passenger traffic has rebounded to pre-COVID-19 levels and that its commercial revenues in March 2022 topped those recorded in March 2019.
Specifically, duty-free sales at the KKIA climbed substantially in March 2022, with a growth rate of 62% compared to March 2019 (and a growth of 243% compared to March 2021).
Indeed, airport operator, Riyadh Airports Company, says that March 2022 was the most successful month of duty-free sales ever recorded by KKIA, with the airport twice breaking its daily record or sales.
It notes that the airport also enjoyed increased revenue from F&B sales (+12%), retail and other commercial services (+14%) and car parking (+29%) in March 2022 compared to March 2019.
Commenting on this milestone, Riyadh Airports Company CEO, Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Maghlouth, said: “I am delighted with the robust performance and full recovery at KKIA. This illustrates the underlying growth which we will continue to build progressively, as we work toward KSA’s Aviation Strategy and Vision 2030”.
Ayman Aboabah, RAC’s vice president of operations, said: “The strength of passenger recovery in March is an excellent result, delivered as a product of our collective and coordinated efforts.
“We look forward to continuing to work closely with our stakeholders and partners, and build further on the excellent recovery as the year progresses”
And acting vice president commercial, Abdulaziz Al Asaker, comments: “Now that we are finally starting to see the regional travel market rebound, we are confident that these results are just the tip of the iceberg, and that we will see new records throughout the year.
“We can now continue to focus our efforts on transforming KKIA into a leading airport capable of rivalling the best in the world.”
Riyadh Airports Company is currently under expansion, with the redevelopment of Terminals 3 and 4 designed to better equip them to handle the growing number of international events and activities planned for Riyadh as part of Saudi Arabia’s 2030 vision, which seeks to expand the Kingdom’s tourism, transport, and aviation sectors.