Australia's Flight Route Named Among The Busiest In The World

The world's busiest flight paths have been unveiled, and one notable Australian route is once again making a strong showing.

The Melbourne to Sydney route has been recognized as the fifth busiest domestic flight path globally this year, boasting 9.3 million available seats, according to data from global travel analytics provider OAG. This route also held the fifth position last year and before the pandemic in 2019. However, airline capacity has decreased by six per cent since then.

The Melbourne to Sydney flight ranks behind several domestic routes in South Korea (with Jeju International to Seoul Gimpo taking the top spot), Japan (Sapporo New Chitose to Tokyo Haneda in second place, and Fukuoka to Tokyo Haneda in third), and Vietnam (Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City in fourth)

The busiest flight path from Jeju, a popular holiday destination, to Seoul, South Korea’s capital, topped the list with 13.7 million seats available. This route was also the busiest domestic flight in 2019 and last year.

Despite reclaiming the top spot, this route's capacity has decreased by 21 per cent since 2019 and by 12 per cent compared to last year, making it the only route in the top 10 to show a decline in capacity from 2022 to 2023.

Most of the top 10 domestic flight paths remain below their 2019 capacity levels, though four routes have seen positive growth. The Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City route (fourth place) increased by six per cent, the Beijing to Shanghai Hongqiao route (sixth place) saw a three per cent rise, the Tokyo Haneda to Okinawa Naha route (seventh place) grew by four per cent, and the Jakarta to Bali route (tenth place) experienced an eight per cent increase.

Interestingly, the flight path from Indonesia’s capital to Bali—one of Australians’ favourite overseas destinations—did not feature in the top 10 in 2019 but secured eighth place last year.

OAG defines the busiest air routes as those with the highest volume of scheduled airline seats in 2024. The data reflects flights in both directions for each route.

Busiest International Flight Routes

This year, Australia was not represented in the top 10 busiest international flight routes.

The busiest international route globally was from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital, to Singapore, offering 4.9 million seats. The route from Cairo, Egypt, to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was in second place, with 4.8 million seats.

Notably, there was only a two per cent capacity difference between the first and second positions in the international rankings, a stark contrast to the significant 15 per cent gap seen between the top two routes in the domestic list.

The route from Hong Kong to Taipei, Taiwan's capital, was the busiest international route in 2019 but has dropped to third place this year, experiencing a significant capacity decline of 43 per cent since then.

The routes from Seoul, South Korea, to Osaka, Japan, and Seoul to Tokyo, Japan’s capital, completed the top five busiest international flight paths.

All of the top 10 international routes experienced increased capacity compared to last year, with gains ranging from 24 per cent to an impressive 356 per cent. Additionally, six out of the top 10 routes saw capacity growth compared to 2019, with increases between one per cent and 42 per cent.

According to OAG, the busiest airport in the world this year remained Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in the US, followed by Dubai International Airport, Tokyo International (Haneda) Airport, and London Heathrow Airport.

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