Budapest Airport passenger traffic falls 95% y.o.y. in Feb

Transport

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Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport handled 54,407 passengers in February 2021, registering a 95% drop in traffic compared to February 2020, which was before the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in Europe, when the passenger number still exceeded 1 million, according to a press release by Budapest Airport.

The airport says that this year's passenger traffic continues to reflect restrictions introduced all over the continent.

In its figures released about the start of the year, IATA also reported a further decrease in international aerial passenger traffic. Demand for air travel dropped by 72% during the first month of the year, compared to the period before the pandemic, an even greater decrease in passenger traffic than in the last month of 2020. In the same comparison, European airlines registered an 82.6% drop.

Cargo volume up 21% y.o.y.

On the other hand, the volume of cargo handled at the airport grew by 21% compared to February 2020. The total volume amounted to 12,109 tons, making the month the strongest February on record in the history of the airport.

Budapest Airport says that it remains committed to continuously developing air cargo; in 2021, the company will start preparing the second phase of the BUD Cargo City, the design and construction of additional goods handling facilities, warehouses, and offices.

Preparing for the restart

The airport operator is drawing up plans involving several different scenarios on how the airport will operate safely in practical terms, from a healthcare perspective as well, even with a high level of passenger traffic. These plans include the utilization of airport premises, the introduction of new technologies and the expansion of the existing coronavirus test center.

The operator also noted that is doing everything it can to rebuild traffic to the 2019 level as soon as possible, but this is primarily dependent on the travel regulations introduced by the various countries, the availability and efficiency of vaccines and testing and the level of inoculation.

 

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