(Seychelles News Agency) - Air Seychelles' ground handling department surpassed the 1 million passenger threshold in 2019 as a result of an increase in the frequency of flights to Seychelles and the arrival of new airlines.

According to the airline, between January and December 2019, the ground handling department handled 475,029 incoming and 533,686 outgoing passengers amounting to 1,008,715 passengers compared to 927,856 passengers in 2018.

The 5 percent growth -- a total of 80,859 more passengers handled in 2019 -- also comprises 34,113 transiting passengers accessing the Seychelles' hub, connecting with other carriers to their final destinations.

"Having surpassed the 1 million passenger threshold is indeed a great achievement. I proudly extend my congratulations to the ground handling team for keeping up the great team spirit and for delivering the highest performance in 2019," said Vania Larue, head of ground services

Some of the new flights to Seychelles, a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean last year, included the return of Air Mauritius in July last year with twice-weekly flights. In November, Air Seychelles started a new service to Israel on Wednesdays from Seychelles with the return flight a week later from Tel Aviv, while the French national airline -- Air France -- restarted direct flights from Paris.

"To manage the high volume of passengers, last year, we reviewed the entire ground handling procedures, implemented new work schedules for our staff members in addition to making a considerable investment in our ground support equipment," she added.

Air Seychelles was established in 1978 and began long-haul service in 1983. The airline currently offers international flights to Johannesburg, Mauritius, Mumbai and Tel Aviv. The airline also offers more than 350 domestic scheduled flights a week throughout the archipelago, including domestic charter services.