European airport passenger traffic tops pre-Covid level
Passenger traffic reached 2.5 billion in 2024, up 7.4 percent from the previous year, according to provisional figures from Airports Council International (ACI) Europe.
That total was 1.8 percent above 2019 levels, said the trade group, which represents more than 600 airports in 55 countries from western Europe to Israel and Central Asia.
Growth was mostly driven by international passenger traffic, which rose 8.8 percent, while the number of domestic travellers was up 2.5 percent from the previous year and remained below pre-pandemic levels.
"Europe's airports welcomed an additional 200 million passengers last year, with many surpassing their previous historic records," said ACI Europe director general Olivier Jankovec.
"This was achieved despite much inflated air fares, continued supply pressures, mostly tepid economic growth and geopolitical tensions," he added.
He noted, however, that nearly half of Europe's airports remained below their pre-Covid traffic levels in 2024.
"We are now in a multi-speed European airport market where competitive pressures just keep rising," Jankovic said.
The association is forecasting a four-percent rise in passenger traffic this year, he said, but warned that it would have to keep it "under review, considering the overwhelming global political and economic uncertainties".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Local Italy
a day ago
- Local Italy
La Bella Vita: Signs summer has arrived in Italy and a guide to Italian bars and cafes
La Bella Vita is our regular look at the real culture of Italy – from language to cuisine, manners to art. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to newsletter preferences in 'My Account' or following the instructions in the newsletter box below. After weeks of changeable weather, showers, and unusually cool temperatures, especially in northern regions, sunny and hot conditions are expected across much of Italy this weekend. But as parts of the country prepare for highs of 37-38C over this fine settimana, beach weather isn't the only thing you can look forward to. At the start of summer, as the mercury soars, Italy suddenly starts to look and feel different in many different ways. From loud music at bars and beach clubs everywhere to the return of summer footwear like sandali and infradito and supermarket shelves bursting with seasonal fruit, we listed just some of the signs that summer has well and truly arrived in Italy. Whether you live in Italy or plan to visit this summer, you can expect to be spending plenty of time in Italian bars and cafes - either to cool down in the hottest part of the day or to bask in the late-afternoon sun while sipping on a refreshing tipple. You may already know the difference between a caffè macchiato and a marocchino and the acceptable time of day to order a cappuccino, but there's more to Italian caffe-bar culture than knowing the correct names of the most popular beverages. Here's a handy guide to the unspoken rules around visiting an Italian bar or cafe. Italy is known for being a particularly religious country and for having a generous number of public holidays. So you may find it strange that Pentecost Monday, which commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus's disciples, isn't a national holiday, especially because it does grant residents a day off in several European countries, including Austria, Germany, France, Spain and Switzerland. But why isn't Lunedì di Pentecoste a national holiday? We looked into the reasons for it in the article below.
Local Italy
28-05-2025
- Local Italy
'Disaster for customers': EU's plan to cut flight compensation provokes anger
, which proponents say will result in fewer flight cancellations, on Wednesday in Brussels. Carriers currently must pay air travellers in Europe up to €600 ($682) for delays of more than three hours, or if a flight is cancelled less than 14 days before departure. Supporters see the rules dating back to 2004 as an example of the European Union's prowess in defending consumer rights. But airlines say they face a hefty bill, which "perversely" often leads them to cancel flights rather than run them with a long delay -- with the knock-on effect on flight schedules. "Extending the so-called delay thresholds will give airlines more time to move planes and crews across Europe to save flight schedules," said Airlines for Europe (A4E), an industry group. Poland, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, has picked up plans for reform that have languished since a 2013 commission proposal failed to bear fruit. Warsaw initially mooted upping the maximum non-sanctioned delay to five hours, according to several people familiar with the discussion. But some member states, including Germany, oppose the idea and negotiations are ongoing to find a compromise, several European diplomats told AFP. "Long flight delays are a real nuisance. They ruin the start of well-deserved holidays. They disrupt important plans. They cost valuable lifetime," said Stefanie Hubig, Germany's consumer rights minister. Berlin could not agree to any changes "unilaterally aligned" with airlines' interests "just before the holiday season," she added. More flights, less money Upping the threshold to five-hours could save almost 50 percent of flights that are currently cancelled, according to A4E, which represents Air France-KLM, Lufthansa and other companies accounting for more than 80 percent of European air traffic. It would also strip about 75 percent of passengers of the right to compensation, said Europe's BEUC umbrella consumer rights group. "This is an unacceptable step back from the current level of protection," it said in a joint statement with consumer associations. Delays and cancellations could cost airlines up to €8.1 billion this year, according to the European Commission. Yet, agencies that help passengers get money in exchange for a fee note that of the millions of passengers eligible for compensation, only a fraction each year file a claim. "For European customers this is a disastrous change," Tomasz Pawliszyn, the head of one such firm, Airhelp, told AFP of the planned reform. Since the three-hours threshold has been adopted in other jurisdictions, such as Canada, Turkey and Britain, the changes would generate "confusion" and potentially lead to some European carriers being allowed longer delays than their non-European rivals on some of the same routes, he added. ' Blackmail ' The proposed change is part of a broader package of reforms. This includes some clearly passenger-friendly moves, such as barring airlines from charging for hand-luggage of a standard size and weight. It has nevertheless enraged some European lawmakers, as the Polish presidency of the European Council is seeking to push it through with a rarely-used expedited procedure that limits parliament's say. "The first word that comes to my mind about the council behaviour is blackmail," Andrey Novakov, a lawmaker with the centre-right EPP and the parliament's rapporteur on the issue told AFP. "Everyone who is not a pilot here in the parliament will need some time to digest" the reform and come up with suggestions that "could serve both passengers and airlines". "This is not happening when you have a time pressure," he said.
Local Italy
26-05-2025
- Local Italy
Why has the US increased its travel warning for Italy?
As millions of Americans prepared to travel abroad this Memorial Day weekend, the US State Department increased its travel advisory warning level for Italy from one to two due to the 'risk of terrorism'. The US travel safety rating system for other countries ranges from level one ("exercise normal precautions") to level four ("avoid all travel"). The State Department website did not specify why the advisory level for Italy had been raised at this time, and no details about a specific terror threat were given. There have been no recent terrorism-related incidents reported in Italy. It gave a list of public places to avoid where possible, including 'tourist spots' and 'religious sites'. Visitors to Italy were advised to 'stay alert', 'check local media for breaking news", and see the State Department's website for further information on staying safe while traveling. Other popular European destinations have long been under a US level two advisory for potential terrorist activity, including the UK and France. Experts have suggested that Italy has long been able to prevent such attacks partly due to lessons learned from anti-mafia policing, and that it also has a lower number of citizens at risk of radicalisation than countries like the UK or France - and therefore fewer suspects to watch.
