Dubai still busiest airport for international travellers

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Airport saw numbers increase from 78million in 2015 to 83.6million in 2016
It became the world's busiest for international passenger traffic in 2014
The airport announced in February it was expanding its annual capacity to 90m

Published: 08:45 EST, 24 January 2017 | Updated: 08:45 EST, 24 January 2017

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Dubai International cemented its title as the world's busiest airport for international passengers in 2016, with a 7.2 per cent increase in traveller numbers to 83.6million.

Dubai Airports said 'near record numbers' in December had pushed annual traffic at the Gulf hub to 83,654,250 passengers, compared with 78,014,838 in 2015.

The airport, which serves as the home of airline Emirates, became the world's busiest in terms of international passenger traffic in 2014.

Dubai International cemented its title as the world's busiest airport for international passengers in 2016, with a 7.2 per cent increase in traveller numbers to 83.6million

'With our new forecast for 89million passengers in 2017, DXB is closing the gap on Atlanta and Beijing for the top spot in overall traffic,' Dubai Airports chief executive Paul Griffiths said in a statement.

The airport announced in February it was expanding its annual capacity to 90million passengers with the opening of a new concourse.

Griffiths said at the time that Dubai Airports was expecting to receive 85million passengers in 2016.

Situated on transcontinental air routes, Dubai is one of several Gulf-based airports to experience prodigious growth in recent years.

Dubai Airports said 'near record numbers' in December had pushed annual traffic at the Gulf hub to 83,654,250 passengers, compared with 78,014,838 in 2015

More than 100 airlines fly to around 260 destinations from the international hub.

In August an Emirates' Boeing 777 crash-landed at Dubai International, forcing authorities to cancel more than 200 flights. All passengers and crew were evacuated but a firefighter died while putting out the blaze.

Dubai's second airport, Al-Maktoum International, opened in 2013 and will be capable of receiving 120million passengers a year once fully operational.