Number of air passengers in EU up 8% in 2024 y/y
In 2024, the total number of passengers travelling by air in the European Union was 1.1 billion, an increase of 8.3 per cent compared with 2023 (973 million), EU statistics agency Eurostat said on December 8.
Eurostat said that data show that in 2024, all EU countries registered an increase in the number of passengers carried by air compared with 2023. Hungary (+19.2 per cent), Czechia (+18.9 per cent) and Estonia (+17.8 per cent) reported the largest increases, while the lowest ones were in Sweden (+1.3 per cent), Bulgaria (+3.8 per cent) and France and Ireland (both +4.6 per cent).
In 2024, among the 10 EU airports recording the biggest numbers of passengers carried were Paris/Charles de Gaulle, with 70.3 million passengers (+4.3 per cent), Amsterdam/Schiphol, 66.8 million passengers (+8.0 per cent), Madrid/Barajas, 66.1 million (+9.9 per cent), Frankfurt/Main, 61.5 million (+3.7 per cent) and Barcelona/El Prat, which recorded 54.9 million (+10.3 per cent).
“Passengers carried” refers to passengers on a flight counted only once and not repeatedly for each individual stage of that flight. It excludes direct transit passengers.
Roma/Fiumicino placed sixth with 48.7 million passengers, but saw the highest increase among the top 10 airports (+20.8 per cent). Athinai/Eleftherios Venizelos moved ahead and replaced Paris-Orly in 2024, securing the 10th place thanks to a significant passenger growth compared with 2023 (+19.6 per cent), Eurostat said.
(Photo: Rui Caldeira/ sxc.hu)
