A strong rebound in outbound flight seats, particularly in Asia, has been noted among the top 10 nations with the best international air connectivity for 2024, says Mabrian, a travel intelligence platform . 

In a press statement, Mabrian says that China and Japan are at the forefront of this resurgence, with China’s available international air seats increasing by 75.8 pc, surpassing 75.6 million seats. Japan also experienced a significant rise, growing 35.1 pc  to over 60.8 million outbound seats.

The statement adds that according to a survey by Mabrian, which is part of Data Appeal Company, the rankings on data concerning seats available on scheduled international direct flights throughout 2024. Mabrian says that the top 10 countries represent 43 pc of global outbound air seats. 

The report shows that Europe remains strong in the rankings, with five European countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, France and Italy, consistently improving. 

It says that Spain, in particular, ranks third and serves as a key connectivity hub with Latin America, boasting an 11.5 pc year-on-year growth.

Mabrian says that in the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) continues to solidify its position as a major connectivity hub, recording 85.6 million international seats, with a 10.2 pc annual growth. Türkiye also saw an 8.9 pc increase, maintaining its importance as a link between Europe and Asia.

Carlos Cendra

Mabrian’s report further highlights the exceptional performance of GCC countries such as Qatar, which grew by 13 pc and Saudi Arabia, which saw an 11.8 pc rise in international outbound seats. Meanwhile, Kuwait experienced a 1.6 pc decline in air connectivity.

“The performance of GCC countries’ airports is worth to be monitored: 8 pc of international air seats availability are concentrated in outbound flights from, mainly, United Arab Emirates, as well as from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain, even considering not all these markets grow uniformly,” says Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communications at Mabrian. 

Mabrian data indicates that besides United Arab Emirates, Qatar has seen 13 pc YoY growth and close to 31 million outbound international air seats and Saudi Arabia recorded 11.8 pc YoY growth and over 40,6 million outbound international air seats are the markets showing the best performance within this region, along with Bahrain with 7.6 pc interannual growth. Oman remains stable and Kuwait international air connectivity decreases, cutting down 1.6 pc of total outbound seats.