SEPANG - Kuala Lumpur International Airport retained fourth place globally and remained Asia’s most connected airport in OAG’s Megahubs 2026 ranking.
OAG published its Megahubs 2026 index on Sept. 16. On its Aug. 2 measurement day, KUL recorded 35,749 possible scheduled connections and a connectivity index of 232.1.
The airport served 154 destinations and had 40.0 million scheduled seats between September 2025 and August 2026. It held the same global position as in 2025, while destinations increased from 151 to 154 and capacity rose 6.9%.
Istanbul Airport moved into first place globally with a connectivity index of 265.4 and 337 destinations, followed by London Heathrow and Amsterdam Schiphol.
Asia Pacific accounted for eight airports in the global top 20, including Kuala Lumpur in fourth, Seoul Incheon in sixth, Tokyo Haneda in eighth, Singapore Changi in 11th and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi in 12th.
The ranking measures scheduled connection opportunities rather than the number of passengers who actually transfer. OAG counted possible connections between inbound and outbound flights within a six-hour window where either flight was international. Destination totals cover services operated between September 2025 and August 2026.
Kuala Lumpur also retained first place in OAG’s Low-Cost Carrier Megahubs index. OAG counted 14,911 possible low-cost connections across 154 destinations, giving KUL an LCC connectivity index of 96.8. AirAsia accounted for 34% of total flights at the airport, while low-cost carriers represented 44% of KUL capacity.
Malaysia Airports said KLIA handled 31.7 million passenger movements in the first half of 2026, up 5.4% from a year earlier, including 23.4 million international movements, which rose 7.8%.
Malaysia Airports also expects additions to Kuala Lumpur’s international network.
Managing Director Datuk Mohd Izani Ghani told Bernama on Sept. 11 that Lufthansa was expected to return to KLIA Terminal 1 in October and that another three international airlines were expected to begin Kuala Lumpur services by year-end.
“We are expecting four (international) airlines from now until the end of the year,” Mohd Izani said.
