Warsaw Chopin airport: LOT's growth brings hub opportunities but must regain traffic from Lufthansa

LOT Polish Airlines' plan to more than double passenger numbers to 10 million in 2020 will bring significant growth to its base airport, Warsaw Chopin. LOT's aspirations to be the hub carrier for the "New Europe" will elevate Chopin airport to competing with Budapest, Prague and Vienna to be a hub for Central Europe.

LOT's growth is important to Warsaw Chopin, but is not the sole story. Chopin grew traffic while LOT restructured, while passenger numbers declined and then stayed flat. Second largest carrier Wizz Air is growing its presence and could introduce connections. Ryanair meanwhile is at Warsaw's LCC airport, Modlin, contributing 60% growth in the first five months of 2015.

Although Warsaw Chopin finished an expansion programme in May-2015, further works are needed to support LOT's growth, especially with widebodies. Emirates will up-gauge its existing daily service before presumably later considering a second daily flight. The bigger challenge to LOT and Warsaw is Lufthansa and its German hubs, which have grown as LOT shrank, especially in secondary Polish cities.