2012 was another record year for aviation in Australia with more than 86 million passengers flying domestically and internationally. This is a 4.5 per cent increase on 2011.
Passenger growth in Australia was more than three times the rate of the United States, which registered a 1.3 per cent increase in passenger numbers in 2012.
Increases in travel in and out of Australian airports show the strength of Australia's economy.
The number of international passengers travelling through Australia’s airports grew 5.2 per cent in 2012.
Of the top 10 countries with flight links to Australia, three of the four fastest growing were in Asia, confirming the enormous potential of Asian tourism and business markets in the Asian Century.
Passengers between China and Australia grew 15.6 per cent; Japan over 11 per cent and Singapore more than 9 per cent.
The number of passengers carried on domestic flights grew by over 2 million, or 4.1 per cent on 2011, with most of the growth occurring between major capital cities. A number of routes to our regional centres also experienced rapid growth.
For example, Melbourne to Perth was up 14.8 per cent, Cairns to Melbourne was up 15.3 per cent and Perth to Port Hedland grew more than 33.6 per cent.
Sydney-Melbourne and Sydney-Brisbane continue to be the two busiest domestic routes in the country, confirming Sydney’s standing as the hub of our aviation network.
BITRE's International and Domestic reports are attached or can be downloaded from www.bitre.gov.au