Aena passenger traffic rises 3.1% in October as freight falls

Aena Group airports handled 36.6 million passengers in October 2026, up 3.1% year on year. Aircraft movements rose 3.2% to 308,773, while freight volumes fell 9.6% to 135,706 tonnes.

Aena’s Spanish network accounted for 30.5 million passengers, up 3.5%. Madrid-Barajas remained the busiest airport with 6.42 million passengers, up 6.4%, followed by Barcelona-El Prat with 5.26 million, up 0.3%. Alicante-Elche recorded the strongest growth among Spain’s eight busiest Aena airports, rising 10.1% to 2.10 million passengers.

Freight volumes across the Spanish network fell 9.9%. Madrid-Barajas remained the largest cargo airport despite a 12.9% drop to 70,079 tonnes. Barcelona’s freight volume rose 5.5% to 20,176 tonnes, while Zaragoza’s fell 16.2% to 18,408 tonnes.

Aena’s 17 Brazilian airports handled about 4 million passengers, down 1.0%, with traffic at São Paulo Congonhas falling 4.3%. In the UK, London Luton grew 7.6% to 1.69 million passengers, while Leeds Bradford, which joined the group in May, handled 421,612 passengers, up 2.7%.

From January to October, Aena Group airports recorded 346.5 million passengers, up 4.0%. Aircraft movements increased 3.8% to 2.94 million, while freight volumes declined 3.2% to 1.24 million tonnes.