Despite a general chaos in the aviation industry, several strikes and thousands of cancellations, more than 1.7 million passengers passed through Brussels Airport in June, an increase of 168% compared to June 2021, but also a decrease of 28% compared to the same month in 2019.
These are again the highest figures in absolute numbers since the beginning of the Covid crisis. However, passenger numbers could have been even higher if it hadn’t been for the industrial actions Brussels Airport was faced with in the week of 20 June. Several airlines also experienced occasional cancellations due to capacity problems at European airports.
The number of departing passengers is higher than the number of arriving passengers due to the start of the summer holidays, for some, during the last part of June. The share of departing transfer passengers is 14.5% and thus remains 3 percentage points lower than in 2019. This can be attributed to the stronger recovery of originating departures and a decrease in transfers within Europe in particular.
The top 10 most visited countries from Brussels Airport in June were Spain, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Greece, Portugal, USA, France, the UK and Morocco respectively. The top ten destinations in June were Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon, Rome, Milan, London, Istanbul, Vienna, Malaga and Frankfurt.
Cargo traffic at the airport fell by 12% compared to June 2021. Air cargo volumes also fell by 12% while the number of cargo flights has decreased by 9% compared to 2021. The full cargo segment recorded a fall of 15%, while cargo on board passenger flights increased by 22%, due to the increase in the number of passenger flights.
Integrator services declined by 19% due to the slowdown in the growth of the e-commerce market in Western Europe and the temporary reallocation of some flights to other airports. In addition, trucked cargo volumes were also down by 15%.
As in previous months, Asia is the largest import and export region. Africa is the second largest import region and the third largest export region, showing year-on-year growth in both segments. North America is the third largest import region and the second largest export region.
The total number of movements in June 2022 increased by 69% compared to 2021, reaching 16,111 flight movements (compared to 20,895 in 2019). The number of passenger flights increased by 105% compared to 2021 and accounted for 69% of the passenger flight movements in June 2019. The average occupancy rate per flight was 139 passengers, compared to 133 in 2019. Passenger load factors therefore continue to increase, as does the deployment of larger aircraft.
