Spain has unsurprisingly been declared as the top post-pandemic summer overseas destination.
More than 13 million passengers flew to the country between July and September, representing 86% of pre-pandemic numbers.
Spain’s dominance was confirmed in official data released by the Civil Aviation Authority for the three peak summer months.
Greece and Italy followed Spain with 4.6 million and 4.1 million passengers respectively during July, August and September.
Greece surpassed its 2019 performance at 114% of levels achieved three years ago, while Italy recorded 83% of visits compared to pre-pandemic levels.
The aviation regulator’s figures also show that more than 73 million passengers flew in and out of the UK between July and September, still 19% below pre-Covid-19 levels.
July and August passenger volumes were both at 81% of 2019 and September was at 83%, indicating that consumer confidence in air travel continues to build, according to the CAA.
Further data from the UK Civil Aviation Authority shows
An improvement in the number of flight cancellations made on the day of departure was also recorded, dropping by more than 1,500 in the peak summer three to 5,500.
Passenger load factors on flights also picked up strongly, climbing steadily to an average 85% in there third quarter of the year, almost matching the 87% level achieved in 2019.