584,102 thousand passengers passed through Ben Gurion Airport in the first month of 2007 – an increase of about 3.34 percent as compared to the corresponding period last year. There were approximately 272,615 incoming passengers and approximately 311,487 outgoing passengers.

Airline traffic totaled about 5,057 flights, representing an increase of about 9.95 percent as compared to the corresponding period last year.

Israeli airlines flew 295,471 passengers during January, comprising 50.58 percent of the overall number of passengers who passed through Ben Gurion Airport – a 6.19 percent decrease as compared to last year.

The most popular destination was Newark Airport, near New York City, with 47,929 passengers – an increase of 24.39 percent as compared to the corresponding period in 2006. The country with the highest volume of activity was the US, with passenger traffic totaling 115,880 – 19.83 percent of the overall activity.

On domestic flights, 32,150 passengers passed through Ben Gurion Airport in January – a 6.13 percent increase as compared the corresponding period last year. It is worth noting that January was the last full month in which Terminal 2 was used for domestic flights. On February 20th the renovated Terminal 1, which will serve as Ben Gurion Airport’s new domestic terminal, will be inaugurated.

Gabi Ofir, Director General of the IAA, said that “the Israel Airports Authority and Ben Gurion Airport are equipped to provide optimal service to passengers all year round. It is important to note that – although January is considered a slack period in passenger traffic – a substantial increase in traffic was felt this year at Ben Gurion Airport”.