Stuttgart Airport sees decline in pax in Mar-2013, summer 2013 schedule foreshadows declines
Germany's Stuttgart Airport stated (08-Apr-2013) it handled 1.8 million passengers in the three months ended Mar-2013 (1Q2013), a 4.0% year-on-year reduction. Aircraft movements declined 10.1% to 20,058. The airport noted that the figures reflects consolidation of networks by airlines and the deployment of larger aircraft by operators. The average load factors on services from Stuttgart rose 1.1% to 78.3%. Flughafen Stuttgart GmbH MD Georg Fundel noted that the decline in traffic during the quarter was "foreseeable" amid an operating environment characterised by excess capacity, increased fuel costs and the ticket tax burden on German airlines. He also noted the challenges faced by snowy conditions in Germany and throughout Europe and of security strike action at Hamburg and Duesseldorf. For summer 2013, the airport expects a slight decline in passenger numbers, with the summer 2013 schedule outlining a 4% reduction in aircraft movements. [more - original PR - German]