The number of people who traveled on international flights in the country reached around 42 million in the first six months of the year.

According to data by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Sunday, the number of air passengers on international flights provided by domestic and foreign airlines reached 42-point-seven million in the January-June period, up 45 percent from a year earlier.

Although the total fell behind the pre-pandemic figure of 45-point-five million logged in the first half of 2019, record numbers were tallied for some destinations.

The number of air passengers to and from Japan increased by nearly one million from the first half of 2019 to a record high of 12-point-17 million in the first half of this year. The figure jumped by nearly 44 percent from last year. 

Air passengers on the routes for the United States also hit a record high of two-point-64 million in the six-month period, up 15-point-five percent from the first half of 2019.