Upward trend in passenger traffic continues at Fraport’s airports

Credit: Fraport AG

Frankfurt Airport (FRA) welcomed some 2.9 million passengers in March 2022, an increase of 217.9 per cent compared to the same month in 2021.

The lifting of COVID-19 pandemic-related travel restrictions only gradually started in March 2021. In the reporting month, FRA benefited from increasing travel demand, particularly to holiday destinations inside and outside Europe. Compared to pre-pandemic levels, Frankfurt Airport’s passenger numbers rebounded in March 2022 to more than half of the volume registered in the March 2019 reference month (down 47.4 per cent). During the first quarter of 2022, FRA’s traffic surged by 192.2 per cent year-on-year to about 7.3 million passengers (Q1-2019 comparison: down 50.8 per cent).

FRA’s cargo throughput (air freight and air mail) decreased by 13.1 per cent year-on-year to 181,214 metric tonnes in the reporting month (March 2019 comparison: down 10.5 per cent). Factors contributing to this decline included China’s ongoing COVID-related lockdowns, as well as reduced airspace capacity following airspace closures due to the war in Ukraine. In contrast, aircraft movements in March 2022 climbed by 97.0 per cent year-on-year to 26,941 takeoffs and landings at FRA. Accumulated maximum takeoff weights (MTOWs) also grew by 56.4 per cent year-on-year to about 1.8 million metric tonnes.

The airports in Fraport’s international portfolio also largely sustained their rebound in March 2022. Most of the Fraport Group airports achieved significant traffic gains in the reporting month, with some even recording growth rates of more than 100 per cent year-on-year, albeit compared to strongly reduced traffic levels in March 2021.

Ljubljana Airport (LJU) in Slovenia welcomed 50,928 passengers in March 2022. At the Brazilian airports of Fortaleza (FOR) and Porto Alegre (POA), combined traffic rose to 951,474 passengers. Lima Airport (LIM) in Peru registered about 1.4 million passengers in the reporting month. At Fraport’s 14 Greek regional airports, total traffic grew to 550,155 passengers. At the Twin Star airports of Burgas (BOJ) and Varna (VAR) on the Bulgarian Riviera, traffic increased to a total of 54,999 passengers. Traffic also advanced at Antalya Airport (AYT) on the Turkish Mediterranean coast, with 832,512 passengers served in March 2022.