Dubai International Airport tops Asia Pacific and Middle East Air Connectivity Index for 2025

Dubai: Dubai International Airport maintained its position as the top airport in Asia Pacific and the Middle East in the 2025 Air Connectivity Index, according to the latest report issued by Airports Council International for the Asia Pacific and Middle East regions. The Air Connectivity Index covers 315 airports, including 277 in Asia Pacific and 38 in the Middle East, and measures direct, indirect, and hub airport connectivity, taking into account the economic weight of destinations and the quality and efficiency of connectivity. Dubai International Airport continued to lead the list of the most connected airports in the two regions, ahead of Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Incheon International Airport in South Korea. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in the People’s Republic of China came in fourth place, followed by Hamad International Airport in Qatar, Singapore Changi Airport, Beijing Capital Airport in China, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport in Thailand, Tokyo Haneda Airport in Japan, and Hong Kong International Airport. Dubai International Airport topped the Hub Airport Connectivity Index, scoring nearly 40% higher than its closest competitor, followed by Shanghai Pudong Airport. The report ranked Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi among the most improved airports in the category of airports that receive between 25 and 40 million passengers annually, along with Noi Bai International Airport in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi, and Tan Son Nhat International Airport in the Vietnamese city of Ho Chi Minh. Sharjah International Airport was among the airports that recorded the strongest improvements in the category of airports that receive between 15 and 25 million passengers annually. According to the report, the Middle East region recorded a 21% growth in air connectivity during 2025, driven by the expansion of Gulf airlines, while air connectivity in the Asia-Pacific region grew by 10%. The index showed that 74% of the 315 airports included in the study recorded positive growth in air connectivity during 2025, while the overall index rose by 11%, compared to a growth of 14% in 2024. The report noted that major hub airports continued to lead growth, with between 83% and 97% of them recording growth in connectivity, driven by the expansion of airline networks and continued demand for international travel. In addition, the CEO of Dubai Airports, Paul Griffiths, expressed his pride in Dubai International Airport topping the Air Connectivity Index, saying that the importance of an airport can be measured by its ability to connect people to the world. Griffiths added, in a post on LinkedIn, that Dubai International Airport is directly connected to more than 215 destinations, placing the airport at the heart of a global network. He noted that around 100 million people pass through major aviation hubs in the Middle East, and that about one in three of them travel through Dubai International Airport, pointing out that these figures highlight the importance of Dubai and the region in the movement of the world. Griffiths affirmed that “[Dubai Airports], in cooperation with its partners, will continue to expand travel options, ensuring that Dubai remains one of the most connected cities in the world.”