Athens airport traffic falls 5.9pct in 11 months of this year

Athens International Airport SA passenger traffic fell 5.9 per cent in the first 11 months of the year as the economic crisis hit Greek travel.

The number of people passing through the country’s biggest airport dropped to 13.6 million from 14.4 million a year earlier, according to a statement on its website today.

Tourism, Greece’s biggest industry, will account for almost 16 per cent of gross domestic product and almost one in five jobs in 2011, according to London-based World Travel and Tourism Council.

Domestic passenger traffic declined 12 per cent to 4.6 million and international traffic dropped 2.6 per cent to 9 million in the first 11 months, the company said. The number of domestic passengers fell 21 per cent to 302,250 in November and international traffic dropped 11 per cent to 544,337.