(Finance) – Sprint start of the year for theFalcone Borsellino international airport in Palermo. The trend of the first ten days of January, in fact, confirms the growth trend of 9% of transit passengers and 5.5% of r flightscompared to the same period in 2024 and an average passenger load per flight of 141 compared to 138.
“The beginning of the year confirms a positive trend of our airport – he says Vito Riggio, CEO of Gesap, the management company of the Palermo airport – Every effort must be made to make the journey increasingly safe and comfortable”.
After a record 2024, with 8.9 million travellers, 10% more than in 2023 and a positive balance of 810 thousand passengerswith +9.36% of flights (61,204 against 55,968 in 2023) and international traffic which has reached 30% (2,400,000 of the total travellers), a 10% growth in passengers is expected for 2025 already from January, which according to traffic estimates developed by the Gesap planning and control office, will close to around half a million transit passengers.
There are many new features and partnerships announced in recent months with important airlines that have already put several flights on sale: United will activate the direct connection with Newark (EWR), New Jersey from May, while Neos has confirmed the summer flight to New York (JFK).
Furthermore, easyJet has announced three new routes: Lisbonthe only connection from Sicily, Palma de Mallorca And Bristolwhile from 2026 – but flights are on sale – Jet2 has opened Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle. Swiss, on the other hand, adds one more overnight flight per day. Absolute news since May with the Condor flight to Rome Fiumicino. Volotea, however, adds flights to Haraklion/Crete and Bilbao in the summer.
TO December 2024, passengers in transit were over half a million (552,247), +8.56% compared to the same month of 2023 (508,701). Approximately 21,600 passengers in the period from 23 December 2024 to 7 January 2025 compared to the same period in years 23/24. In total there were passengers in transit over 161 thousand compared to 140 thousand last year, or +15.13%, with an increase of 15.17%, 17 thousand more passengers, on domestic flights, and 14.98% of travelers on international flights, approximately 4,600 more.
Numbers that go hand in hand with the good performance of the winter season, which made 8% more seats available to passengers compared to last winter.
From Palermo there were more flights to and from France with over 670 thousand passengers, Germany (540 thousand), Spain (300 thousand), Great Britain (290 thousand), Switzerland (180 thousand), Poland (145 thousand), Belgium 105 thousand), Austria 103 thousand), Turkey 55 thousand). The most popular French cities were Paris – which absorbs at least 50% of French traffic – Marseille, Lyon and Nantes. In Germany Munich, Memmingen, Cologne, Berlin, Nuremberg, Frankfurt. In Spain, Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia. The new Palermo-New York, from June to September, saw over 18 thousand passengers transit.
Regarding the national trafficthe route with the most traffic is Rome Fiumicino with over one million 630 thousand passengers. The Milan area exceeds one million 730 thousand passengers (725 thousand Malpensa, 570 thousand Linate, 440 thousand Bergamo). Followed by Naples (365 thousand), Bologna (330 thousand) Verona (308 thousand), Pisa (30 thousand), Turin (265 thousand), Venice (255 thousand).
(Photo: by Ken Yam on Unsplash)