Gov’t highlights global praise for Egypt’s airports’ ability to meet growing demand

CAIRO - 9 June 2026: The Egyptian cabinet’s media center published a number of infographics via its social media platforms, highlighting the importance of the increased capacity of the airports in meeting the growing demand on air travel, and in boosting tourism. 

This comes as part of the state’s plan to develop and raise efficiency of the Egyptian airports, in accordance with the international standards, aiming to accommodate the increased flow on air travel, reduce congestion, and improve the quality of service provided to travelers. 

This has been reflected in the global praises for the efficiency of the Egyptian airports and their ability to handle various challenges, especially amid the current regional tensions. 

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) commended the recent success of Egyptian airports in handling a large number of emergency and rescheduled flights resulting from the closure of several airspaces in the region.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) affirmed that Egypt is a prime example of resilience in the travel and tourism sector, particularly after doubling airport capacity and expanding its tourism infrastructure. 

Meanwhile, the Wego platform highlighted the importance of Egyptian airspace as a transit route for flights rerouted due to the closure of airspace in neighboring countries. Wego is a leading global travel metasearch engine and online marketplace. 

For its part, the BRICS group commended the growth in passenger traffic at Egyptian airports in early 2026, reflecting an improvement in the sector's performance supported by airport development plans and increased inbound tourism.

Regarding the surge in passenger numbers at Egyptian airports during the first four months of 2026, the infographics indicated a 7.4% increase in the number of flights, reaching 70,700 flights between January and April 2026, compared to 65,800 flights during the same period in 2025.

The number of passengers at Egyptian airports also rose by 6.8%, reaching 9.4 million passengers between January and April 2026, compared to 8.8 million passengers during the same period in 2025.

Furthermore, concerning the construction of new airports, the infographics showed that four new airports were built, bringing the total number of airports to 23 in 2026, compared to 19 in 2014. 

These airports include Sphinx International Airport with a capacity of 1,200 passengers per hour, Bernice International Airport with a capacity of 600 passengers per hour, and Bardawil International Airport with a capacity of [missing information]. 300 passengers per hour, and the Capital International Airport with a capacity of 300 passengers per hour.

Cairo International Airport currently has a capacity of 30 million passengers annually, and this is targeted to exceed 60 million passengers annually after the construction of Terminal 4. 

The total capacity of Egyptian airports – excluding Cairo International Airport – reached 44.6 million passengers annually after the implementation of development projects.

These efforts included several airports, among them Hurghada International Airport, whose capacity increased from 7.5 million to 13 million passengers annually, and Sharm El Sheikh International Airport, whose capacity increased from 7 million to 10 million passengers annually. Additionally, Alexandria International Airport saw its capacity increase from 1.2 million to 6 million passengers annually.