Brussels, 15/05/2012 (Agence Europe) - Eurostat has published figures on air passenger transport for 2010 which illustrate a gradual slowdown in growth. Although 777 million passengers were transported in 2010, the year ends with 5.1% growth in the fourth quarter and 2011 beginning with weaker growth of 3.5% in the first quarter of the year.
2010, weak growth in EU airports. The busiest airport, London Heathrow, experienced a decline in the number of passengers transported in 2010 compared to the previous year, with 66 million passengers, in other words a decrease of 0.2%. This is only a slight fall compared to 9 other airports out of the 30 major ones in Europe. Dublin fell by 2.1%, followed by London Stansted (-7.0%) and Manchester and Athinai (both fell by 5.2%). The eruption of the Eyjafjöl volcano also had an impact on passenger levels in Europe. Nonetheless, the airports of Copenhagen (+9.1%), Vienna Schwechat (+8.7%), Milan Malpensa (+7.9%) and Roma Fiumicino (+7.6%) had slightly more optimistic outcomes with much more marked growth levels.
2012, a two-speed European market. The Airport Council ACI Europe considers that the initial passenger transport figures for 2012 highlight a two-speed European market, with airports outside the European Union faring better. The director general of ACI Europe, Olivier Jankovec, explained: “Europe has really become a two-speed aviation market, with EU airports only reporting +1.7% average growth in passenger traffic during Q1, while non-EU airports in Russia, Turkey, Norway, Iceland and elsewhere are surging with growth of 11.5% in the first quarter. This is proof of the impact on the non-resolved sovereign debt crisis and punitive national taxes on air transport.” (MD/trans/fl)