Airports Council International (ACI) has recently published global airport traffic data for the year 2023. The information is contained in the Annual Report on World Airport Traffic 2024, published by ACI World, and whose data is collected directly from its global network of airport operators and official civil aviation bodies.
The data in the report indicate that total global passenger traffic in 2023 was close to 8.7 billion, representing an annual growth of 30.6% driven by a continued resurgence of international traffic after the pandemic. In particular, global traffic benefited from the reopening of Asian markets and a growing willingness of the world's population to travel despite global macroeconomic conditions.
Airports in Latin America and the Caribbean handled more than 732.4 million passengers, representing 8.4% of global traffic. Annual passenger growth in our region was 12.7%. In terms of air cargo, 5.8 million tons were handled with an annual growth of 1.3%. Latin America and the Caribbean account for 5.1% of global air cargo traffic.
“The data set compiled by ACI indicates that travel demand in Latin America and the Caribbean is strong. The main countries in the region in terms of air traffic volume are already operating above 2019 levels, for example Brazil and Mexico, which are, respectively, the two countries with the highest traffic volume in the region, already record passenger numbers close to 200 million. In 2023, 209.2 million travelers transited through Brazilian airports and 185.8 million through Mexican airports, although Mexican airports recorded a higher volume of international passengers (58.4 million) than Brazilian ones (21.9 million),” said Dr. Rafael Echevarne, Director General of ACI-LAC.
The top 20 airports in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2023
Passenger traffic:
Benito Juárez International Airport (MEX) in Mexico City had the highest traffic volume, totaling 48,415,693 passengers, approximately 26% of the country's total volume;
The largest percentage increase was recorded at Buenos Aires International Airport (EZE), with growth of 44%;
Among the top 20 busiest airports in the region, six are in Brazil, the largest market in the region. Together, the airports of Guarulhos (GRU), Congonhas (CGH), Brasilia (BSB), Campinas (VCP), Santos Dumont (SDU) and Belo Horizonte (CNF) had a combined movement of 112,898,238 passengers in 2023, equivalent to approximately 54% of traffic at Brazilian airports.
Air cargo traffic:
The airport that registered the highest volume of cargo was Bogotá's El Dorado International Airport (BOG), with 758,180 tons;
The airport that showed the highest percentage increase was Quito International Airport (UIO), with a growth of 14.12%;
Three of the five Mexican airports listed among the top 20 in the region showed a drop in the volume of cargo transported, which is explained by the country's government's decision to transfer cargo flights to the Felipe Ángeles International Airport (NLU), which began operations in 2022.
Aircraft movements:
The airport with the highest volume of operations was Mexico City International Airport (MEX), with 363,450 movements;
The airport that showed the largest percentage increase was Jorge Newberry Airport (AEP), in Buenos Aires, with growth of 22.24%.
Source: ACI-LAC.