Frankfurt Airport in Germany has reportedly served 2.9 million passengers in July 2021, a 116% increase year-on-year and the highest monthly passenger volume since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
On some peak days, passenger numbers in Frankfurt reached about 60% of the pre-pandemic levels, such as on July 31 when it served around 126,000 passengers.
Compared to July 2019, passenger traffic at Frankfurt still registered a 60% decline for the month. From January to July 2021, Frankfurt Airport welcomed 9.3 million passengers. Compared with the same seven-month period in 2020 and 2019, this represents a decrease of 31% and 77% respectively.
Elsewhere in Fraport Group’s portfolio, its 14 Greek regional airports served 3.6 million passengers in July 2021. On the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, the Twin Star airports of Burgas (BOJ) and Varna (VAR) also reported higher traffic volumes, serving 485,477 passengers overall. Antalya Airport (AYT) on the Turkish Riviera saw traffic grow to about 3.9 million passengers. St. Petersburg’s Pulkovo Airport (LED) in Russia welcomed about 2 million passengers. At Xi’an Airport (XIY) in China, traffic advanced to nearly 3.9 million passengers.
Similarly, at London Heathrow, July resulted in a 74% upsurge in passenger numbers compared with July 2020. More than 1.5 million travelers passed through Heathrow in July 2021, marking the most activity since March 2020.
North American passenger numbers grew by nearly 230% YoY, and New York JFK reclaimed the top spot as Heathrow’s most popular route. Despite signs of recovery, passenger numbers are still down over 80% on pre-pandemic July 2019, as barriers to travel remain.
Emma Gilthorpe, chief operating officer, London Heathrow, said, “Finally, some blue skies are on the horizon, as travel and trade routes slowly reopen. The job though is far from complete. Government must now capitalize on the vaccine dividend and seize the opportunity to replace expensive PCR tests with more affordable lateral flow tests. This will ensure travel remains attainable for hardworking Brits, desperate for well-earned getaways and keen to reunite with loved ones before the summer travel window closes.”