KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Passenger movements at Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd’s ( MAHB) 39 airports in Malaysia grew by 11.2% year-on-year with 104.4 million passengers recorded for 2025.

In a statement Monday, MAHB said it handled 10 million passengers at its airports in December alone, as the country’s main gateway Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) saw movements of 6.1 million passengers, largely due to Christmas and New Year festivities.

MAHB said more than one million passengers were handled over a three-day period. It said its operations remained stable during the peak period.

Managing director Datuk Mohd Izani Ghani said the December performance reflected operational planning and coordination across the airport network. Passenger growth was supported by the addition of new airline partners and destinations across its Malaysian airport network.

Passenger traffic grew strongly across Malaysia’s airports in December. KLIA handled 6.1 million passengers, bringing 2025’s total to 63.3 million, up 10.8% year-on-year. Subang led monthly growth with 34.4%, while Kota Kinabalu, Langkawi, Penang, and Kuching also saw double-digit increases.

Growth was boosted by network expansion and new routes. December launches included Xiamen Airlines’ thrice-weekly Hangzhou-Kuala Lumpur service at Terminal 2, 9 Air’s three weekly flights from Hangzhou, and Hainan Airlines’ twice-weekly Qionghai-Kuala Lumpur route.

Batik Air Malaysia also introduced new routes to Osaka (Kansai), Singapore (from Ipoh, Subang and Penang), Kuala Namu and Jakarta, while Firefly launched five weekly flights to Cebu and Sichuan Airlines introduced three weekly services between Chongqing and Kuala Lumpur.

Outside Malaysia, the company also manages the Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport in Türkiye. The airport handled 49 million passengers in 2025, representing a 17.5% increase year-on-year. The airport processed 4.2 million passengers in December.

MAHB said it remains focused on operational readiness and capacity management as travel activity continues into Visit Malaysia 2026.