Airline passenger traffic in Georgia recovers by 69%, flights by 70% from pre-pandemic numbers

Georgia’s three international airports served 1,716,718 passengers between January-June, marking a 189 percent increase in comparison to the same period of the pandemic-hit 2020, the Georgian Civil Aviation Agency has said.

The Agency also said passenger traffic had recovered by 69 percent compared to the pre-pandemic figure in 2019, while the number of flights had recovered by 70 percent.

Between January and June Georgian international airports served the following numbers:

• Tbilisi International Airport - 1,163,177 passengers (+166% y/y)
• Kutaisi International Airport - 328,386 passengers (+965%)
• Batumi International Airport - 216,062 passengers (+77%)

Passenger traffic was restored with the following figures:

• Tbilisi International Airport - 62%
• Kutaisi International Airport - 90%
• Batumi International Airport - 87%

Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge

Georgia’s rural airports also saw an increase in passenger numbers in the six-month period, the body said.

Queen Tamar Airport in Mestia in the northern Svaneti region served 3,212 passengers in the reporting period, which was a 150 percent increase year-on-year and 92 percent recovery from the pre-pandemic figure.

Meanwhile, Ambrolauri Airport in Georgia’s Racha region served 884 passengers, 47 percent more compared to the same period of 2021 and a 48 percent increase compared to 2019.

Central Georgia’s Natakhtari Airport served 4,997 passengers, posting a 165 percent year-on-year increase and a 45 percent recovery from the pre-pandemic figure.

Natakhtari airport. Photo: Vanilla Sky

Number of flights

All three international airports in the country received 8,556 flights over the six months, of which 6,785 were regular flights and 1,771 charter flights. 

The Georgian Civil Aviation Agency said the number of flights had increased by 84 percent year-on-year and recovered by 70 percent from the pre-pandemic figure.

Leading airline companies based on passenger traffic

Turkish Airlines is the leader in the Georgian aviation market based on the number of passengers transported in the first six months of 2022, followed by the Hungarian budget airline Wizz Air, with both airlines having 13 percent market share. 

The top 10 airline companies with the highest number of passengers this year are:

1. Turkish Airlines – 13% (226,719 passengers)
2. Wizz Air – 13% (226,000 passengers)
3. Pegasus – 10% (164,293 passengers)
4. Belavia – 6% (108,979 passengers)
5. Flydubai – 5%  (85,954 passengers)
6. Israir – 5% (79,395 passengers)
7. Azerbaijan Airlines – 4% (70,409 passengers)
8. Fly Arystan – 3% (57,275 passengers)
9. Georgian Airways – 3% (51,767 passengers)
10. EL AL – 3% (51,288 passengers)

There are 40 airline companies operating in Georgian airports as of July 1, with flights operated to 74 destinations.