Adelaide Airport soars to new heights with record passenger numbers

Adelaide Airport has recorded its busiest year ever, with 9.15 million people passing through the terminal in the twelve months to June 30.
 
The record, a 4.8 per cent increase on the year prior, comes as South Australia continues to strengthen its position as an aviation hub.
 
International passenger numbers surged 20 per cent to 1.24 million, while domestic and regional travellers increased 2.8 per cent to 7.91 million.
 
The airport also set new passenger records across three consecutive months this year, recording its busiest April, May and June ever, with 791,000, 716,000 and 694,000 passengers passing through the terminal respectively.
 
The 2026 AFL Gather Round delivered Adelaide Airport’s busiest week on record from April 7 to13 April with almost 200,000 passengers coming through.
 
China, India, Singapore, New Zealand, Malaysia and the UK are among the nations with strong showings for international visitors during those months.
 
The record comes on the back of a period of extraordinary aviation growth for South Australia, with new routes, expanded services and growing international investment boosting Adelaide's position as a key gateway to Australia for both tourism and trade.
 
Milestones during the year include:

• Welcoming United Airlines’ direct service from San Francisco, the first-ever direct air link between South Australia and the United States,
• Launching Qantas’ Auckland to Adelaide service,
• Cathay Pacific resuming services from Hong Kong, which had been paused during the pandemic,
• Introducing Air New Zealand’s direct flights from Christchurch to Adelaide,
• Celebrating China Eastern’s first direct flights to Adelaide from Shanghai, and
• Seeing China Southern expand its Guangzhou to Adelaide route from a seasonal service to a year-round operation

The expanded connectivity is delivering benefits from supporting local exporters and attracting international students to making it easier for global travellers wanting to discover South Australia's world-class food, wine, events and nature.
 
The momentum continues into the year ahead, with Singapore Airlines recently announcing it will expand to 12 weekly services from October this year - the most flights any international carrier has ever operated year-round to Adelaide. While China Southern and Cathay Pacific will both increase their services each week during the peak summer season.
 
Minister for Tourism Emily Bourke said; “The investment we’ve seen from airlines establishing and expanding routes into Adelaide is a testament to the hard work of every South Australian who makes this state somewhere people worldwide want to visit, do business with and invest in.”
 
“With so much going on in South Australia, it’s no wonder we’ve seen so many visitors passing through Adelaide Airport.”
 
“South Australia really is more globally connected than ever before, the sky is the limit when it comes to opportunities in this state.”
 
Adelaide Airport’s Managing Director Brenton Cox added; “People are discovering what we’ve known all along, that South Australia has a strong economy and is a great place to visit and do business.”
 
“Last year we saw 13 global carriers flying to 12 international destinations, which in turn created one-stop links to around 440 cities worldwide.” 
 
“We anticipate this growth will continue into 2027 and beyond.”