GUERNSEY Airport has had its busiest July ever.
Airport director Colin Le Ray confirmed there had been 92,457 passenger movements in the month – a 3% rise on last July.
The figures compare well with Jersey, which suffered a near 7% fall in passenger numbers compared to July 2008.
‘It was the highest recorded figure for July since records began,’ he said.
‘Looking at the details, the improvements have really been seen on the UK routes. We have seen growth in the UK market and, in particular, on Gatwick, Southampton and the introduction of East Midlands.
‘That route has generated new passenger movements without sucking people away from other routes.’
But Mr Le Ray warned that, despite the record month, Guernsey’s overall figures were still down on previous years.
‘July has certainly reversed what we were seeing so far this year,’ he said. ‘But even with that good July figure we are still 4% down in total on the first seven months of last year, so we need a few good months to pull us back.
‘It is encouraging, though.’
Mr Le Ray said the next two months were crucial.
‘August and September are the key months for us because that’s when most people go away, so it will be important to see how we do for those,’ he said.
He said data on the breakdown of July travellers would become available but it was too soon to have that information now.
‘It is probably a bit early to speculate on the composition of passengers and the reasons for the increase in travel,’ he said.
Despite the success of UK routes, both inter-island and international passenger numbers were down for July so it is unlikely that the island is seeing more European visitors.
The York Aviation report, published in June, highlighted that the majority of Guernsey’s air passengers were local, with 59% living on island.
July’s improved figures might therefore be as a result of islanders taking holidays abroad.
Chris Elliott, director of marketing and tourism for Commerce and Employment, said it was great to see Guernsey bucking the international trend by growing passenger numbers in July as well as June.
‘In a time of worldwide economic crisis, when people generally are travelling less, Guernsey is clearly maintaining its appeal as a visitor destination. June’s occupancy figures were also slightly up on last year’s, so we’re optimistic that our visitor economy may well ride out the recession,’ he said.
Article posted on 12th August, 2009 - 2.00pm
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