Saturday, May 22, 2021
Almost half a million more passengers travelled through Melbourne Airport in April compared to March, as domestic border restrictions eased around the country in time for the Easter school holiday period.
Domestic numbers peaked at 1,402,439 – the highest figure in the last 12 months.
International passengers also more than doubled, rising from 10,787 in March to 27,904 in April, thanks to Australia’s new quarantine-free travel arrangement with New Zealand.
Melbourne Airport CEO Lyell Strambi said it was encouraging to see more travellers in the terminals each day.
“April was a busy month which saw us get back to about 65 per cent of pre-COVID levels largely due to the school holidays and Easter, supported by the ability to travel around most parts of the country without restrictions,” said Mr Strambi.
“Many Victorians took advantage of being able to fly to New Zealand quarantine-free and there were emotional scenes in Melbourne’s newly refurbished International Arrivals Hall as family and friends reunited for the first time in more than a year. It was great to see people reconnecting.
“While the recovery has commenced, it remains fragile. We need to be more aggressive in relation to the vaccine rollout, in order to realise the benefits of Australia’s remarkable management of COVID-19.
“It is increasingly likely that Australia will be left behind as countries around the world reopen to one another on the back of high vaccination rates. In the short-term our splendid isolation is ultra-safe from COVID, but in the long-term it will act as a handbrake on the economy, jobs and opportunities for Australians.”
Mr Strambi added the airport recently conducted traveller research, managed by independent agency TH?NK Global Research, which revealed sentiment towards travel was improving.
“Our research shows confidence is increasing thanks to the vaccine rollout, with willingness to travel up by 33 per cent from November 2020 to March 2021,” said Mr Strambi.
“We also know 70 per cent of survey participants said they would consider flying interstate now that border restrictions have eased, while visiting friends and family topped the list as the main purpose for travel, followed closely by leisure trips.
“Demand for international travel clearly exists and we are hopeful that once we get a high proportion of our population protected by vaccines, we can start to carefully reopen to counties with similarly high rates of vaccination and low rates of infection.”
Passenger figures for April 2021:
| Passengers | April 2021 | April 2020 | Growth (%)* |
| International | 27,904 | 21,069 | 32.4% |
| Domestic | 1,402,439 | 42,171 | 3225.6% |
| Total (ex transits) | 1,430,343 | 63,240 | 2161.8% |
*Monthly percentage growth compared to April 2020
Passenger figures for Financial Year to April 2020/21
| Passengers | Financial Year 2020/21 (‘000) | Financial Year 2019/20 (‘000) | Growth (%)* |
| International | 152,722 | 8,181,743 | -98.1% |
| Domestic | 4,403,399 | 18,833,119 | -77.6% |
| Total (ex transits) | 4,556,121 | 27,014,862 | -83.1% |
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