Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) recorded 19.93 million international passengers between January 1, 2026, and October 22, 2026, a 2.6% rise from the same period last year, indicating steady demand for travel to and from the Philippines.
Photo: NAIA/Facebook
Demand for overseas flights remains strong among Filipinos, as NAIA operator New NAIA Infra Corp. (NNIC) announced that the airport handled 507,772 more international passengers than the 19.42 million recorded during the same period in 2025.
“It’s encouraging to see international passenger traffic continuing to grow despite the challenges affecting aviation worldwide,” NNIC General Manager Lito Alvarez said.
Because of the observed growth in passenger numbers, he said their responsibility is to ensure NAIA can support higher passenger demand with better facilities, more reliable operations, and an overall better experience for the people.
International passengers account for 48.1% of NAIA’s total traffic, up from last year’s 46.6%. Meanwhile, the airport’s domestic passenger volume decreased by 3.4% to 21.49 million.
Photo: NAIA/Facebook
NAIA’s international passenger traffic increased alongside improvements in the airport’s operational performance, particularly system-wide on-time performance, which rose to 81.07% from January 1, 2026 to October 22, 2026. During the same period last year, this performance was 77.92%.
In addition, NNIC has continuously improved NAIA’s infrastructure and facilities while maintaining daily operations since assuming management of the airport in September 2024 through a public-private partnership (PPP) deal.
Some of the completed and ongoing major airport improvements include: automated immigration e-gates at Terminals 1 and 3, more transport and parking facilities, improved wayfinding for easier navigation inside the airport, added food and retail options across terminals, and most notably upgrading the passenger waiting areas, restrooms, boarding facilities, and the like.
New international routes to Manila from other airlines
Meanwhile, some airlines are announcing their plans for additional routes or services to Manila. France’s premium flag carrier has resumed its services to the Philippines, and Philippine Airlines (PAL) is set to launch nonstop flights to Chicago starting in November, and to Delhi and Mumbai in December.
Other airlines are also expected to schedule nonstop flights to Manila in 2027, with initial operations planned. An Indian carrier is also expected to introduce its services to Manila.
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