Marsa Alam airport, the gateway to the Egyptian Southern Red Sea, has announced a 16 per cent year-on-year growth in total passenger numbers for July.

Flight movements into and out of the airport have grown by 17 per cent  year-on-year.

“The success of Port Ghalib, the Red Sea’s new luxury resort, is the main driver behind the growth in passenger numbers and in flight movements at the airport,' stated Hussein Refky, the airport’s general manager.

'We have seen increasing numbers of passengers coming from across Europe and the Middle East, a reversal of the trends of other Egyptian airports and resorts, and certainly against the trend in other European and Middle Eastern tourist destinations.'

'We have recently added flights from Kuwait and Jeddah, and expect to continue growing passenger numbers and the number of routes covered from the airport.'

“Despite seeing some of the worst overall conditions the global tourism industry has seen in our life time, Port Ghalib continues to see an increase in the number of visitors. People continue to be attracted by the affordable luxury the resort offers, with its three five star hotels, Six Senses spa, world class marina and international standards conference facilities,' added Ibrahim Saleh, vice president of AL-Kharafi Group, the owner of Port Ghalib Resort Company.

The airport, which this week saw the arrival of a Boeing 747 for the first time, has a 3,240 metre runway and accommodates Boeing 737 - 757 - 767, Airbus 320 - 310 - 300 jets and similar aircraft.-TradeArabia News Service