Doha will surpass Dubai as the busiest airport in the Middle East
A new study by the travel analysis company Forward Keys shows that in the first half of this year, air traffic (based on ticket booking data) through Doha Hamad International Airport has surpassed Dubai International Airport.
Forward Keys stated that Doha has “obtained and consolidated its leading advantage over Dubai Airport”. From January 1 to June 30, 2021, the number of tickets issued for travel through Doha was higher than the number of tickets issued for travel through Dubai. 18%.
The company stated that this trend “seems to continue”, and bookings through Doha in the second half of this year were 17% higher than through Dubai.
Forward Keys pointed out several reasons for these changes, including Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates lifting the three-and-a-half-year blockade of Qatar, and "During the worst of the new crown pneumonia crisis, many routes in and out of Doha are still run".
The company said that as a result of this, Doha has become the main hub for repatriation flights, especially flights to Johannesburg and Montreal.
The study also showed that in terms of market share, Doha "has greatly improved its position relative to Dubai and Abu Dhabi." In the first half of 2021, the hub traffic volume was 33% in Doha, 30% in Dubai and 9% in Abu Dhabi, while in the first half of 2019, 21% in Doha, 44% in Dubai and 13% in Abu Dhabi.
Qatar Duty Free Shop recently announced that it plans to open 21 new shopping and restaurants at Hamad International Airport in Doha this year as part of its 21st anniversary celebrations.
Commenting on the news, Olivier Ponti, Vice President of Insights of ForwardKeys, said:
"If there were no lockdowns, we would not have seen Doha charge Dubai. The lockdown encouraged the establishment of new routes as a strategy to make up for lost traffic." So, ironically, the seeds of the relative success of the Doha Round seem to be Sowed by the hostilities of its neighbors. "
"However, it is important to remember that flights across the Middle East in the first half of 2021 are still 81% below pre-pandemic levels. Therefore, as the pace of recovery accelerates, the situation may change significantly."
In April this year, the International Airports Association released preliminary data on the world's busiest airports in 2020, showing the huge impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dubai Airport is still one of the airports receiving the most international passengers in the world, but this number has dropped by 70.1%. Dubai Airport fell out of the top ten busiest airports in the world, with Chinese airports occupying 7 of them.