Air Traffic Grows Robustly in 2024

Traffic at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) saw a robust growth in 2024 as the airport entered a new era of three-runway operation, with flight movements in December rose year-on-year by 12.5% to 33,550. It was close to pre-pandemic level, with individual daily flight movements exceeding pre-pandemic level, setting new record high.

For December 2024, passenger volume increased 18.3% year on year to 5.1 million. All passenger segments experienced significant growth compared to the same month last year, with traffic to and from Southeast Asia, Mainland China and Japan recording the most significant increases. Cargo throughput in December 2024 increased by 6.6% year on year to 446,000 tonnes, with a 6.8% increase recorded in exports. Traffic to and from key trading regions in Europe, the Middle East and Australasia saw the most substantial increases. The increase in cargo traffic in 2024 was mainly attributed to exports, which was up 20.2% compared with 2023, and the most significant increases were recorded in traffic to and from key trading regions in Europe, North America and Middle East.

Vivian Cheung, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK), said, “Year 2024 was a fruitful and rewarding year for HKIA. We commissioned the Three-runway System in November, on time and within budget, and was crowned the world’s busiest cargo airport for the 13th time since 2010. We had a busy Christmas period and are preparing for another peak during the Chinese New Year holidays as we see airlines adding a significant number of flights to meet the high demand.”

During the year, HKIA handled 53.1 million passengers and 363,305 flight movements, representing increases of around 34.3% and 31.6% respectively compared to 2023. Total cargo throughput for 2024 saw an annual growth of 14.0% to 4.9 million tonnes.

HKIA further expands its extensive air traffic network with several new destinations and flight routes added in January 2025. HK Express launched a new flight route to Sendai, while Hong Kong Airlines resumed direct flights to Vancouver and Gold Coast. Shenzhen Airlines launched a new service to Nanjing, while a new passenger airline, Air Premia, is starting to operate flights between Hong Kong and Seoul.

HKIA received a number of prestigious awards as the new year began. At the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) Hong Kong 40th Anniversary Cocktail Reception, AAHK received the Prestigious Infrastructure Project in Hong Kong award in recognition of the Three-runway System project.

The awards compliment completed outstanding transportation infrastructure projects which greatly benefited mobility in Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, HKIA was named “International Airport of the Year” and “Innovative Airport of the Year” at the 2024 Sky Choice Travel Awards organised by CAAC Inflight Magazine, the official inflight publication of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

The awards celebrate achievements in the aviation, hotel and travel sectors that promote economic development, and steer post-pandemic economies in areas such as industry development, innovation, quality service and customer experience. Winners are chosen by a combination of criteria based on expert jury evaluations, third-party data platforms, and the magazine’s editorial team.