RIYADH: Passenger numbers travelling through Saudi airports increased 9.6 percent in 2025 to reach 140.9 million, according to the data released by the General Authority for Statistics,
International passengers accounted for 75.8 million of the total, marking a 9.4 percent year-on-year rise, while domestic travelers totaled 65.1 million, reflecting a 9.8 percent increase.
The growth comes as Saudi Arabia advances its Vision 2030 plans to become a global aviation and tourism hub through airport expansion, airline growth, and better connectivity, after surpassing its original target of 100 million annual tourists and raising its 2030 goal to 150 million.
The Kingdom’s aviation sector growth in 2025 has been followed by severe regional disruption because of the Iran conflict, which caused airspace closures and flight cancelations across parts of the Middle East.
Despite this, Saudi airports handled more than 12.1 million passengers between Ramadan 1 and Shawwal 9 — Feb. 18 and March 28 — according to the General Authority of Civil Aviation.
In its latest report focused on 2025, GASTAT stated: “King Abdulaziz International Airport ranked first among the Kingdom’s airports in terms of arriving and departing passenger traffic, recording 53.5 million passengers, an increase of 9 percent compared with 2024.”
It was followed by King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with 40.8 million passengers, up 8.7 percent, and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam with 13.7 million passengers, marking a rise of 7 percent.
Speaking during the 20th meeting of the Aviation Program Activation Steering Committee in Riyadh on May 15, GACA President Abdulaziz Al-Duailej said Saudi Arabia’s aviation sector had demonstrated resilience amid recent global operational challenges through contingency planning and expanded airport capacity.
Al-Duailej added that the Kingdom received more than 2,000 flights operated by neighboring countries’ carriers through several airports between Feb. 28 and May 3, transporting over 258,000 passengers while maintaining smooth air traffic flow.
In its latest report, GASTAT added that the Kingdom handled around 178,600 domestic and 207,700 international arriving and departing passengers daily in 2025.
According to the report, the total number of arriving and departing flights reached 979,800 in 2025, an 8.3 percent increase compared to the previous year.
The number of domestic flights in 2025 stood at 506,300, representing a 6.8 percent year-on-year rise, while international flights totaled 473,500, up 9.9 percent.
King Abdulaziz International Airport handled the highest number of flights at 314,400, followed by King Khalid International Airport with 296,800 and King Fahd International Airport with 108,500.
“The average daily arriving and departing domestic flights across all airports in the Kingdom reached 1,387 flights, while the average daily arriving and departing international flights reached 1,297 flights,” added GASTAT.
In 2025, the total aircraft fleet for commercial and general aviation grew significantly to 483, representing a 33.8 percent rise from the previous year.
Air cargo volume reached 1.18 million tonnes in 2025, with inbound cargo dominating at 695,600 tonnes, followed by transit cargo at 420,100 tonnes and outbound cargo at 69,700 tonnes.
The number of countries reached through the Kingdom’s international airports in 2025 totaled 66 countries, increasing by 1.5 percent compared to 2024.
The number of destinations served to and from the Kingdom’s international airports reached 176 destinations in 2025, recording a 2.3 percent annual rise.
“Regarding the use of Saudi airspace in 2025, Saudia ranked first among airlines in terms of airspace utilization, accounting for 25.5 percent of total flights, followed by flynas with 13.3 percent, and flyadeal with 8.6 percent,” said GASTAT.
In the Global Air Connectivity Index 2025, Saudi Arabia ranked 18th globally, compared to 17th place in 2024.
