KUALA LUMPUR — Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) has lost its position as Southeast Asia’s second busiest airport, with Indonesia’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport overtaking it in July, according to British aviation analytics firm OAG.
Soekarno-Hatta International Airport recorded a seat capacity of 3.3 million last month, marking a 3.2% increase compared with the same period last year. It ranked behind Singapore’s Changi Airport, which remained the region’s busiest with 3.56 million seats, Vietnamese news site VnExpress reported.
KLIA, which had held the second spot for years, fell to third after its seat capacity declined 4.4% year-on-year to 3.15 million.
Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport placed fourth with 3.14 million seats, although capacity dropped 1.9%, while the Philippines’ Ninoy Aquino International Airport completed the top five with 2.58 million seats, down 5.1%.
Located in Sepang, KLIA spans about 100 sq km, making it one of Southeast Asia’s largest airports by land area and a key gateway for domestic and international travel.
Despite losing its ranking, KLIA continued to record passenger growth. The airport handled 23.4 million international passengers in the first half of the year, an increase of 7.8% from a year earlier, while total passenger movements rose 5.4% to 31.7 million, according to The Star.
OAG said Southeast Asia’s overall aviation capacity fell 1.2% year-on-year in July to 50.4 million seats, as airlines adjusted operations amid rising fuel costs linked to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Several airlines in the region have also reduced international routes in response to higher operating costs, affecting overall capacity across Southeast Asian aviation markets. – August 3, 2026