Berlin, Jan 31 (AP) The number of air passengers in Germany rebounded somewhat last year but was still two-thirds below levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic, official figures showed Monday.

Nearly 74 million passengers last year took off from or landed at the 23 largest commercial airports in Germany, which has Europe's biggest economy, the Federal Statistical Office said. That was about 27% more than in 2020, when the pandemic hit and travel came to a near-standstill, but close to 68% fewer than in 2019, when a record of nearly 227 million passengers used German airports.

Also Read | Pakistan Media Freedom Report: Press Freedom Deteriorated in 2021 Compared to Previous Two Years in the Country.

Pandemic restrictions continue to hamper the air travel recovery.

Although domestic air travel was just over a fifth of 2019 levels after dropping an additional 19% last year, passengers travelling internationally, particularly elsewhere in Europe, were up nearly one-third last year to about 69 million passengers. That was still nearly two-thirds fewer than in 2019.

Also Read | Indian Descent Man Sentenced for 15 Months in Prison by Minneapolis Court for Sexually Abusing 16-Year-Old Boy on Plane.

Last year was a boom year for air freight. Germany's main airports saw a record 5.3 million tons of cargo last year, a nearly 13% increase over pre-crisis levels in 2019. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)