Fraport traffic figures October 2020: passenger traffic remains low at Frankfurt Airport

FRA’s cargo throughput achieves strong performance – Fraport Group airports worldwide report mixed results

In October 2020, Frankfurt Airport (FRA) served some 1.1 million passengers – an 83.4 percent decline compared to the same month last year.  FRA’s cumulative traffic during the January-to-October 2020 period fell by 71.6 percent, because of low passenger demand resulting from the persisting travel restrictions amid the Covid-19 pandemic. In contrast, Frankfurt Airport recorded very positive cargo performance, exceeding year-on-year levels for the first time since 15 months. In October 2020, FRA’s cargo throughput (comprising airfreight and airmail) grew by 1.6 percent to 182,061 metric tons – with cargo-only flights more than compensating for the ongoing capacity constraints for “belly freight” (transported on passenger aircraft). This high cargo demand can be attributed mainly to the upturn in global trade and the solid performance of the Eurozone’s industrial sector.

Aircraft movements at FRA decreased by 62.8 percent year-on-year to 17,105 takeoffs and landings in the reporting month. Accumulated maximum takeoff weights (MTOWs) contracted by 59.5 percent to about 1.1 million metric tons.

Across the Group, Fraport’s international airport portfolio continued to register widely varying traffic performance in October 2020. Some Group airports – particularly in Greece, Brazil and Peru – reported noticeably smaller declines in passenger traffic on a percentage basis compared to the preceding month.

Traffic at Slovenia’s Ljubljana airport (LJU) fell by 89.1 percent year-on-year to 10,775 passengers. The Brazilian airports of Fortaleza (FOR) and Porto Alegre (POA) saw combined traffic sink by 57.5 percent to 569,453 passengers. Peru’s capital city airport in Lima (LIM) reported an 82.8 percent drop in traffic to 345,315 passengers, due to of the ongoing strong travel restrictions in international traffic.

At the 14 Greek regional airports, traffic decreased by 55.3 percent to some 1.1 million passengers.  On the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, the Twin Star airports of Burgas (BOJ) and Varna (VAR) together welcomed 56,415 passengers in October 2020, down 61.3 percent year-on-year.

Antalya Airport (AYT) on the Turkish Riviera posted a 55.3 percent drop in traffic to approximately 1.9 million passengers in the reporting month.  Russia’s Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg recorded a 33.3 percent fall in traffic to around 1.1 million passengers. In China, Xi’an Airport (XIY) received about 3.6 million passengers – representing a 12.7 percent dip in traffic compared to the same month last year.