Philippe Bernard, CEO of Aéroports de Lyon, presents the group’s results for 2013 and for the first quarter of 2014

Freight

2013 has been a good year for Lyon Airports. Its cargo business saw outstanding, two-figure growth (+26.5%) with 42,159.8 tons of air freight transported.

In the first quarter of 2014 these figures remained high with 11,222 tons transported (+13.6% compared to 2013), supported by two key factors:

• Increased hold capacity on the Emirates flight to Dubai five times a week following the move from an A340 to a Boeing 777 (increase in capacity of approximately 10 tons) and the weekly all-cargo flight operated by the Emirati airline
• Express freight reached 8,405 tons in the first quarter, marking a 1.2% increase compared to the same period in 2013

Passenger traffic

Passenger traffic at Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport reached a historical high in 2013 by crossing the 8.5 million mark with a 1.3% growth compared to 2012.

Results from the first quarter of 2014 were more modest with a 1.7% decline to 1,825,408 passengers. The decrease was affected by the 3.8% drop in domestic traffic which was particularly marked on transverse flights such as those to and from Marseille, which offered 14% fewer seats, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Nice. International connections offer a healthier performance with results remaining stable from 2013.

Noteworthy mentions include a strong uptake of traffic to and from destinations in North Africa (+5.3%), especially in Tunisia which was, until recently, suffering from the effects of the Arab Spring. Turkey registered a 37.5% growth with 48,787 passengers, capitalising on both its point to point services and the strength of its hub in Istanbul

The United Kingdom, which represents nearly 10% of overall traffic to and from the airport, leapt up by 9.2% (171,963 passengers), a growth partially explained by the attraction of the Alps to holiday-goers.

Incoming passenger traffic has performed well this winter thanks to skiers flying in mainly from England, but also from Russia and for the first time from Israel. More than 426 flights were operated for skiers.

The « low-cost » offer maintains a positive momentum with an 11.5% growth in March alone. Low-cost passenger traffic currently accounts for more than 25% of overall traffic.

New routes

Among the 16 new routes for this summer are those being operated by Air One, the low-cost subsidiary of Alitalia, which will fly to Catania twice weekly. Aegean is strengthening its presence in Lyon by adding to its Lyon-Athens service (3 times a week) with a new line to Heraklion twice a week. This summer, flights to these two flagship destinations will also be operated by the French low-cost airline Transavia, which is continuing its development by launching a Lyon-Athens service (3 times a week) and an additional frequency to Heraklion, bringing the total to 3 weekly flights. The French airline is also opening a Lyon-Porto route which will serve Funchal, meaning the airline now flies to 8 destinations from Lyon.

Additionally, Sun Express offers a weekly flight to Izmir, the low-cost Spanish airline Vueling has launched flights from Lyon to Seville and Malaga on 19th April, and easyJet is inaugurating flights to Palma, Split and Figari. The summer season is also marked by new routes with Twinjet to Stuttgart (5 times a week), Toulon (twice a week) and Le Havre (10 times a week), to Lorient with Easter Airlines or to Dusseldorf with Germanwings, which takes up the Lufthansa connection.

Financial results of Aéroports de Lyon

Lyon Airports made an annual turnover of €158.4 million in 2013; a healthy growth of 3.6% compared to 2012. Effective cost control has allowed a gross operating surplus of €51.4 million, up by 4% from 2012, and a net result of €7.8 million. The group’s successful management of operating costs (+3.4% in 2013) should be highlighted, as they are progressed more slowly than turnover (+3.6%). The airport is continuing its gross debt reduction, currently down to €80.5 million compared to €89.4 million in 2012 and €139 million in 2007, when the SA Aéroports de Lyon was created.

These results, continually moving forward since 2007, enable the airport to ensure the financing of the €260 million investment scheme launched in 2012 and of its flagship project, the construction of the future Terminal 1.