Qatar’s Hamad International Airport handled a total of 1.7 million tonnes of cargo and mail in 2016, a year-on-year increase of 20.8%.

The performance was the airport’s best since it began cargo operations in December 2013.

The airport handled 245,800 aircraft movements for 2016, also a new record.

“2016 has been an exceptional year for HIA, serving more passengers than ever, being recognized as one of the top 10 best airports in the world by Skytrax and receiving the Skytrax ‘5-star Airport’ status,” said Badr Mohammed Al Meer, chief operating officer of Hamad International Airport. “Our capacity expansion programme launched in 2016 has also enabled us to efficiently serve our increasing passenger numbers and handle growing cargo and aircraft movements with our renowned high-quality standards. The programme will ensure that HIA continues to be one of the leading aviation hubs of the world in the coming years.”

During the year, 15 new aircraft parking stands were put into use and 14 new destinations were added to the network by Qatar Airways, according to HIA.