Global air travel approaches 10bn passengers fuelled by Asia-Pacific growth

Record airline passenger demand is exposing “growing pressures” on airports as levels exceed pre-Covid numbers.

Global air travel reached 9.8 billion passengers in 2025, bringing the industry closer than ever to the 10 billion-passenger threshold, according to the Airports Council International (ACI) World.

Latest data from the trade body shows that global passenger traffic rose 3.7% over 2024 and 6.5% above pre-pandemic 2019 levels.

Global aircraft movements exceeded 103.1 million in 2025, up 2% from 2024, bringing the sector to around its pre-2019 total

The top 20 airports handled 11.3 million movements, representing 11% of global traffic, up 2.5% from 2024 and 2.8% above 2019 results.

The world’s 20 busiest airports handled 1.59 billion passengers, representing 16% of all air travellers globally.

Airports in Asia-Pacific led the year’s ranking shifts, driven by infrastructure investment, connectivity improvements, and surging tourism demand, the report noted.

The research, which covers 2,817 airports across more than 180 countries and territories, ranked Heathrow as the seventh busiest behind Chicago, Shanghai, Dallas/Fort Worth, Tokyo, Dubai and Atlanta (pictured) in top position.

 ACI World director general Justin Erbacci said: "Global air travel is approaching a historic milestone, but record demand is also exposing growing pressures on capacity.

“The planning and investment decisions made today will determine whether aviation can meet the demands of the next generation of travellers."

Five of the top 20 airports are located in the US. Four are predominantly domestic hubs, with domestic traffic accounting for between 80 and 95% of total passengers.

ACI World said: “The US presence in the top 20 underscores the scale of North American aviation demand, even as internationally focused hubs in other regions continue to rise.”

Kuala Lumpur International Airport was the biggest mover in the top 20, rising six places from 26th in 2024 to 20th last year. The airport handled 63.4 million passengers, up 11% year on year, supported by capacity expansion, robust domestic traffic growth of 17%, sustained international demand up 8.7%, and stronger connectivity with China.

Shanghai Pudong International Airport posted the second largest jump, climbing five places from 10th to fifth with 10.7% passenger growth driven by the rebound in international travel, supported by visa policy easing and expanded global connectivity.

Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport recorded one of the most notable turnaround. Having topped the global table in 2020, the airport fell to 57th place in 2022 before returning to ninth in 2025, a result that reflects the scale and pace of China’s aviation recovery, ACI World noted.