Oman's airports see 0.1pc decline in passengers by August 2025

13/10/2025 06:32 AST

Passenger movement through Oman's airports (Muscat, Salalah, Sohar, Duqm) witnessed a slight decrease of 0.1 per cent by the end of August 2025.

The total number of passengers reached 10,024,998, compared to 10,015,613 during the same period last year, according to preliminary data issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information, reported ONA.

The statistics showed that Muscat International Airport received 8,757,696 passengers by the end of August 2025, compared to 8,800,036 passengers during the same period in 2024, registering a slight decrease of 0.5 per cent.

The number of flights through the airport also decreased by 5.1 per cent, reaching 62,007 flights compared to 65,306 flights last year.

Salalah Airport, however, witnessed notable growth in air traffic, with the number of passengers increasing by 8.5 per cent to reach 1,208,607 passengers by the end of August 2025, compared to 1,114,062 passengers during the same period in 2024. The number of flights also increased by 4.8 per cent, recording 7,769 flights compared to 7,410 flights by the end of August 2024.

In contrast, Sohar Airport experienced a sharp decline in passenger traffic, dropping by 70.3 per cent by the end of August 2025, with the number of passengers reaching 18,522 compared to 62,360 during the same period last year. The number of flights also decreased by 59.1 per cent, recording only 202 flights compared to 494 flights during the same period in 2024.

Conversely, Duqm Airport demonstrated balanced performance, with the number of passengers increasing by 2.6 per cent by the end of August 2025, reaching 40,173 passengers compared to 39,155 passengers by the end of August 2024. Meanwhile, the number of flights saw a slight decrease of 1 per cent, recording 410 flights by the end of August 2025 compared to 414 flights during the same period the previous year.

The statistics also revealed that Omani nationals topped the list of the most frequent travellers on arriving and departing flights via Muscat International Airport during August 2025, with a total of 223,166 passengers (124,680 arriving passengers and 98,486 departing passengers).

They were followed by Indian nationals with a total of 158,075 passengers (84,685 arriving passengers and 73,390 departing passengers), and then Pakistani nationals with a total of 44,437 passengers (23,342 arriving passengers and 21,095 departing passengers).

The Peninsula