In January–June 2015, Finavia airports served in all 9.75 million passengers (9.7 million in January–June 2014). There has not been a significant change in passenger volume since the previous year with the overall change being + 0.1 %.
Landings of traffic aviation decreased by 3.9% in the early part of the year, which - together with the increase in passenger volumes - indicates that the utilisation rate of aircraft operating in Finland has improved.
Passenger volume at Helsinki Airport is on the rise
The passenger volume of Helsinki Airport increased by 1.3% in January-June, and the number of passengers was 7.9 million. There were 6.6 million international passengers at Helsinki Airport, which is 1.6 % more than during the same period last year. During the first half of the year, international transfer traffic increased by 3 %.
“In the first part of the year, Helsinki Airport has fared well in competition for international air passengers with other large airports in northern Europe. We expect the growth to pick up a bit next year, when a new larger than before aircraft will be introduced for long-haul traffic. We are also continuously working hard to further improve the reputation of Helsinki Airport as a hub between Europe and Asia,” says director Joni Sundelin from Finavia Corporation.
Slight decrease in domestic passenger volume
Passenger volume on domestic flights decreased somewhat from the previous year. During the first part of the year, the domestic passenger volume was 2.7 million, which is 0.4% less than during the same period last year.
“It is clearly evident in domestic air traffic that demand is focused on flight routes to certain airports, while other airports are losing traffic as a trend. Reasons for division of markets include changes in the competitive situation between various forms of transport as well as differences in the economies and attractiveness of areas,” says Sundelin.
Among provincial airports, passenger volumes including domestic and international traffic increased rapidly at Rovaniemi (tot. 227,926, + 12,700 passengers), Oulu (tot. 497,684, + 6,900 passengers) and Mariehamn (tot. 28,998, + 3,000 passengers). Passenger volumes decreased materially, for example, at Pori and Lappeenranta airports in January–June.
Growth in international air traffic
International passenger volume of all Finavia airports, including scheduled and chartered services, increased by 0.3% in January-June and stood at a total of 7.1 million.
The largest destinations of scheduled traffic outside Europe in the first part of the year were Japan (+2.1 %), China (-2.8 %) and Thailand (+20.4 %). The most popular destinations in scheduled traffic in Europe were Germany (+0.4 %), Sweden (+2.0 %) and Spain (+16.2 %).
In charter traffic outside Europe, the most popular destinations were Turkey (0.8%) and Thailand (-43.1%)
The passenger volume of charter flights has decreased by a total of 30.9 per cent during the first six months of the year. Holiday passengers increasingly choose scheduled flights instead of charter flights.
Helsinki Airport is preparing to serve 20 million passengers
Helsinki Airport is undergoing a significant development programme, which will prepare for the increase of passenger volume. It has been estimated that the annual passenger volume of Helsinki Airport will increase to 20 million by 2020. The aim of the development programme is to ensure smooth service and the airport's strong competitive position in transfer traffic between Europe and Asia as the passenger volume increases.
The Helsinki Airport development programme 2014–2020 will cost about 900 million euros and it is expected to have an employment impact of 14,000 person-years. In addition, approximately 5,000 permanent jobs will be created at the airport in various companies.
Finavia publishes monthly traffic statistics, which are available at http://www.finavia.fi/en/finavia-corporation/statistics/2015/.
Unless specified otherwise, the percentages of change given in this press release describe the developments in January-June 2015 compared with the corresponding period in 2014.
