In 2023, London Heathrow saw 79.2 million pass through on their way in and out of the United Kingdom.
At peak times, the crowds can often be too much, with long queues at passport control putting a damper on an otherwise enjoyable holiday.
Such problems do not occur at Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport in Sri Lanka however, where only seven people pass through its terminal on average each day.
Located in Hambantota, about four-and-a-half-hours from the capital city Colombo, the airport surrounded by jungle and small villages boasts little more than a cab rental office and a hotel, with no Pret a Manger to be seen.
Opened in 2013, the airport was the brainchild of then-president Mahinda Rajapaksa who grew up in the area.
Rajapaksa served in that post for nearly a decade, and during his tenure, commanded the airport’s construction at a cost of $209million (£159m), much of it funded by China, as part of its Belt and Road Initiative.
The airport was intended to be the first piece of a bigger puzzle, with a wealth of infrastructure planned to be built around it, opening up remote Sri Lanka to scores of Western and Asian tourists.
The plans never got off the ground and following some light traffic in its opening months, very few flights did either.
By 2015, as the airport was haemorrhaging money, Rajapaksa left his post after being defeated in the January presidential elections.
With low flight revenue, the airport’s unused air cargo terminals were leased to store the rice bumper harvest from the region as well as to provide long-term parking to unused aeroplanes.
According to a Center for Aviation report from 2015, “…the reality is Mattala Rajapaksa International is not needed and is a distraction in Sri Lankan’s efforts to turn itself around.”
Nevertheless, the airport is still a fascinating sight and does draw tourists who travel to see the impressive 11,483-foot runway, capable of receiving the world’s largest airframes in the most unlikely of settings.
Originally built to be able to serve one million passengers, its 12 check-in desks remain deserted. Its future is unclear with rumours that a burgeoning India might be willing to take on the site, although any concrete plans seem years away.
