Munich (dpa) - Munich's airport has registered a record year in terms of passenger numbers, its tenth consecutive increase, according to a statement by operator FMG on Monday.

Last year, Germany's second-largest airport handled almost 48 million travellers, 1.7 million more than in 2018.

Notably, the increases were confined to international travel within and beyond Europe. The number of domestic travellers decreased slightly, by one per cent.

However, the key question for the airport is not the number of passengers logged but how many aircraft take off and land there. This will determine whether or not a third runway is built - a controversial issue.

Total aircraft movements increased by one per cent to 417,000, approaching levels achieved in 2008, when Munich airport registered a record 432,000 aircraft takeoffs and landings.

Airlines have mainly increased the number of intercontinental flights they offer. The airport operator expects this trend to continue. Lufthansa, for example, plans to offer additional long-haul flights to India and the United States.

Despite these increases neither Munich nor Frankfurt, Germany's busiest airport, ranks among the top ten worldwide. The first two spots have long been held by Atlanta and Beijing, each of which logged more than 100 million passengers last year.

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