ACI EUROPE: European passenger traffic up 5.5% in Oct-2024

ACI EUROPE reported (03-Dec-2024) the following highlights from its air traffic report for Oct-2024:

• Passenger traffic in the European airport network grew 5.5% year-on-year, up 3.3% compared to 2019 levels;
• Passenger traffic in the non-EU+ countries market increased 4.5% year-on-year, up 0.2% compared to 2019. Albanian airports were the best performing airports with an increase of 47.5% year-on-year, followed by airports in Uzbekistan (+22.2%), Kosovo (+21.5%) and Georgia (+21.8%);
• Passenger traffic in the EU+ countries market increased 5.7% year-on-year, up 3.9% compared to 2019, with airports in Estonia (+19.2%), Hungary (+18.8%), Croatia (+18.6%), Czech Republic (+15%), Cyprus (+11%) and Finland (+10.7%) recording the best performance compared to Oct-2023;
• Airports in Germany (-12.1%) remained well below their pre-pandemic passenger traffic levels;
• London Heathrow Airport was the busiest airport, with an increase of 3.7% year-on-year, followed by Istanbul Airport and Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport;
• Freight traffic across the European airport network increased 10.7% year-on-year, but remained 0.6% below pre‑pandemic levels.

ACI EUROPE director general Olivier Jankovec said the increase in passenger numbers in Oct-2024 reflects "changing travel patterns and shifting seasonality, with extended demand for leisure and visits to friends and relatives". Mr Jankovec added: "This also reflects strong demand resilience despite air fares having increased on average by 30% in 2024 compared to pre‑Covid, softening economic sentiment and increasing geopolitical tensions". [more - original PR]