The activity at Rafic Hariri International Airport improved remarkably in the first eight months of 2022. The number of Beirut’s International airport passengers added 58.23% and recorded 4,184,221 passengers by August 2022 compared to 2,644,321 passengers during the same period last year.
The breakdown of the airport’s statistics revealed that total arrivals jumped by 60.91% year-on-year (YOY) to stand at 2,083,301 by August 2022. By the same token, the number of departing passengers climbed by a yearly 60.11% to reach 2,077,509 over the same period. Nevertheless, transit passengers decreased from 52,073 by August 2021 to 23,411 transit passengers by August 2022.
For the month of August 2022 alone, airport passengers reached 794,468 passengers up from 590,521 in August 2021, with 318,634 arrivals and 471,349 departures instead of 208,033 and 373,383, respectively, in August 2021. Meanwhile transit passengers stood at 4,485 down from 9,105 same month last year.
Lebanon’s summer season constituted a lifeline for the country that has been stricken by an unprecedented economic and financial collapse since 2019. In fact, the private sector benefited the most from the fresh dollars that entered the country such as hotels, guesthouses, restaurants, and beach resorts. Nevertheless, many Lebanese are being priced out of summer activities due to the currency devaluation.
Beirut’s Airport Activity By August 2022
Source: Beirut International Airport, BlomInvest