Dubai: The UAE’s main airports handled 17.3 per cent more passengers in the first four months of the year compared to a year earlier as local airlines add more capacity to their networks.

A total of 37.84 million passengers arrived, transferred and departed at airports in the country from January to April compared to 32.24 million a year ago, according to data from federal regulator, the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA).

Abu Dhabi International, home to rapidly expanding Etihad Airways, and Dubai International, home to one of the world’s largest carriers, Emirates, accounted for the bulk of additional passengers.

Dubai International, which last year overtook London’s Heathrow to become the world’s busiest airport for international passenger traffic, saw a 14 per cent rise in passenger numbers to 27.5 million.

Emirates and flydubai are driving growth at Dubai International with an additional 12 per cent and 17 per cent of seating capacity, respectively, in the first four months, stated Will Horton, senior analyst at CAPA — Centre for Aviation.

Passenger numbers at Abu Dhabi International rose 27 per cent, above the five-airport average, to 7.4 million passengers with an average monthly increase of 392,577.

Etihad have added 23 per cent more capacity over the same period, which means the airline — and others — are likely filling more seats to and from Abu Dhabi than they were a year ago, Horton stated.

DWC, Dubai’s airport in the emirate’s south, handled 158,216 passengers in the first four months of the year, 80 per cent more than the 84,125 passengers a year ago.

Al Ain International, in Abu Dhabi’s east along the Omani border, has seen a sharp increase in the number of passengers this year of 90 per cent to 10,313 passengers over the January to April period. In March, Ali Majid Al Mansouri, chairman of Abu Dhabi, the manager and operator of airports in the emirate, said the government was studying how to boost traffic at Al Ain.

In Sharjah, 2.6 million passenger passed through Sharjah International from January to April — 23 per cent more than the same period a year ago.

Ras Al Khaimah, which serves the northern emirates, handled 109,411 passengers compared to just 139 a year ago. The emirates flagship carrier, RAK Airways, ceased operations on January 1, 2014. Air Arabia, which is also based at Sharjah, launched hub operations from RAK in May 2014.