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Families flying out of Perth for Christmas have been warned to brace themselves and allow extra time, with Thursday and Friday revealed as the busiest travel days of the festive season at the gateway to WA.
Perth Airport is preparing for a record-breaking summer rush, with 3.1 million passengers forecast to travel through its terminals over the December and January holiday period.
From FIFO workers to travellers: Perth Airport is predicting a record-breaking travel period over December and January.Credit: Tony McDonough
Among those travelling on Thursday was Fremantle Dockers player Luke Jackson, who spoke to 9News Perth ahead of flying to Melbourne to spend Christmas with family.
“It will be a nice break ... not too much [planned]; just relax and enjoy the Chrissy and New Year break,” Jackson said.
More than 2 million passengers are expected to fly domestically, with a further 978,000 international passengers passing through Perth Airport.
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The surge comes as Perth Airport predicts a total of 18 million passengers will have travelled through it in 2025 – about one million more than last year.
Thursday was expected to be the peak day for domestic travel, with 46,500 passengers, while Friday will be the busiest for international flights, with 18,400 travellers taking off overseas.
Perth Airport chief commercial and aviation officer Kate Holsgrove said the surge followed the busiest November on record, which saw 1.5 million passengers pass through the airport.
“This is an incredibly busy time for the airport, so we’re asking travellers to be patient and allow extra time to get through check-in and security,” Holsgrove said.
Major infrastructure works are also under way, with major contracts awarded for Perth’s Airport’s new runway, being delivered by BMD Group and CPB Contractors, alongside the airport’s first multi-storey car park – projects aimed at boosting long-term capacity but adding to congestion in the short term.
Passengers are also reminded to pack their carry-on luggage carefully to help avoid delays at the security screening points.
“Make sure you pack any gifts that may be picked up in security screening in your checked in luggage – this could be soccer balls or NERF guns,” Holsgrove said.
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