DUBAI
Qatar’s Hamad International Airport recorded a sharp decline in passenger traffic in the first half of 2018 amid a protracted dispute with Arab states that severed ties with Doha.
The number of passengers using Hamad International fell 13 per cent to 16.5 million in the six months to June 30, 2018 from 19 million in the same period last year, according to Reuters calculations based on data released by the airport on Wednesday. The airline has been banned from using the airspace of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt after the four states imposed a trade and travel ban on Qatar in June 2017.
Cargo volumes rose 7.6 per cent to 1.05 million tonnes over the same period, Reuters calculated.
