Number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan
Pakistan: Number of airline passengers per year was 7.15 million in 2023. ▲ Rising
Number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan, 1970–2023
Source: International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2023, number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan stood at 7.15 million.
The figure is up 3.3% on the previous year and down 8.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan peaked at 9.63 million in 2016 and was at its lowest, 625,200, in 1972.
Pakistan ranks 55th of 183 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 54 years of available data.
Number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.34 million | — |
| 1971 | 1.09 million | -18.7% |
| 1972 | 625,200 | -42.4% |
| 1973 | 805,200 | +28.8% |
| 1974 | 1.05 million | +30.1% |
| 1975 | 1.45 million | +38.6% |
| 1976 | 1.95 million | +34.1% |
| 1977 | 2.30 million | +18.3% |
| 1978 | 2.66 million | +15.3% |
| 1979 | 2.77 million | +4.4% |
| 1980 | 3.03 million | +9.2% |
| 1981 | 3.10 million | +2.2% |
| 1982 | 3.33 million | +7.5% |
| 1983 | 3.47 million | +4.1% |
| 1984 | 3.64 million | +5.0% |
| 1985 | 3.84 million | +5.4% |
| 1986 | 4.13 million | +7.5% |
| 1987 | 4.43 million | +7.4% |
| 1988 | 4.89 million | +10.3% |
| 1989 | 5.01 million | +2.4% |
| 1990 | 5.18 million | +3.4% |
| 1991 | 5.20 million | +0.3% |
| 1992 | 5.68 million | +9.3% |
| 1993 | 5.65 million | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 5.66 million | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 5.34 million | -5.7% |
| 1996 | 5.38 million | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 5.88 million | +9.4% |
| 1998 | 5.41 million | -8.0% |
| 1999 | 5.85 million | +8.1% |
| 2000 | 5.29 million | -9.5% |
| 2001 | 6.01 million | +13.6% |
| 2002 | 4.14 million | -31.1% |
| 2003 | 4.52 million | +9.2% |
| 2004 | 5.10 million | +12.7% |
| 2005 | 5.36 million | +5.2% |
| 2006 | 5.71 million | +6.5% |
| 2007 | 5.44 million | -4.8% |
| 2008 | 5.61 million | +3.1% |
| 2009 | 5.30 million | -5.4% |
| 2010 | 6.59 million | +24.2% |
| 2011 | 7.94 million | +20.5% |
| 2012 | 7.97 million | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 7.83 million | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 7.67 million | -2.1% |
| 2015 | 8.47 million | +10.4% |
| 2016 | 9.63 million | +13.7% |
| 2017 | 7.26 million | -24.6% |
| 2018 | 6.88 million | -5.2% |
| 2019 | 7.42 million | +7.8% |
| 2020 | 3.71 million | -50.0% |
| 2021 | 4.93 million | +32.8% |
| 2022 | 6.93 million | +40.5% |
| 2023 | 7.15 million | +3.3% |
Pakistan compared with similar countries
- Pakistan's 7.15 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 690,677, 10.4× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Pakistan's 7.15 million is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 6.44 million, 1.1× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | -50.0% | 7.42 million | 3.71 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.60 million | 625,200 | 2.77 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.89 million | 3.03 million | 5.01 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.52 million | 5.18 million | 5.88 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.25 million | 4.14 million | 6.01 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.77 million | 6.59 million | 9.63 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.68 million | 3.71 million | 7.15 million | 4 |
Countries ranked near Pakistan
More reference data data for Pakistan
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 6.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 20.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 61.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.98 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 61.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 20.3 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.75 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 91.27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 260 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 10.79 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan?
- Number of airline passengers per year in Pakistan was 7.15 million in 2023, according to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of airline passengers per year recorded in Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was 9.63 million in 2016.
- What is the lowest number of airline passengers per year recorded in Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 625,200 in 1972.
- How does Pakistan rank for number of airline passengers per year?
- Pakistan ranks 55th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of airline passengers per year rising or falling in Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Pakistan data come from?
- The figures come from International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of airline passengers per year. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
This represents the total rather than unique passenger activity: this means a person who makes multiple trips is counted multiple times.