Barcelona El Prat airport serves 2.6 million passengers in February, an increase of 20.4%

The Barcelona airport at El Prat de Llobregat registered an increase in almost all aspects in the month of February. Thanks to the Mobile World Congress (MWC), international passengers registered an increase of 22% while the number of domestic passengers rose by 16.9%. These numbers contributed to the 20.4% overall growth in total passengers for the month, along with a 13.3% growth in the number of operations. Compared to the same period in 2015, the amount of cargo and merchandise transported also grew, registering an increase of 18.3% and 18.6% respectively. The Catalan airport also saw an increase in annual terms, with 17.4% more passengers and 9.4% more operations than before.

A flight taking off from Barcelona Airport (by P. Cortina)
A flight taking off from Barcelona Airport (by P. Cortina) / ACN

ACN

March 14, 2016 07:24 PM

El Prat de Llobregat (CNA).- The El Prat Barcelona airport ended the month of February having served 2,672,365 passengers, a 20.4% increase compared to the same period the previous year. The airport also registered a growth of 13.3% in the number of operations that took place, with 19,800 take-offs and landings. These increases are in part thanks to the Mobile World Congress (MWC), which in 2016 was pushed forward by a week compared to 2015, when it took place during the first week of March. Consequently, the largest growth in the second month of 2016 was represented by international passengers, with a 22% rise. The number of domestic passengers also increased, showing a rise of 16.9%. In terms of the year so far, the Catalan airport has welcomed around 5.2 million passengers, an increase of 17.4%, and carried out 39,175 operations, which represents a 9.4% growth in annual terms.


As regards international routes, the highest increases in passenger numbers were seen on flights to Latin America, with an increment of 31.5%, followed by the Middle East (with 31.4%) and North America (with 20.7%). The amount of cargo transported also rose. Last month more than 10,351 tons were moved, which represents an 18.3% boost compared with the same period in 2015.

Cargo with domestic origin or destination has increased the most (by 32.3%), followed by international cargo, which has grown by 17.6%.

In the first months of the year, the El Prat Barcelona airport also processed 19,625 tons of merchandise, which represents an increase of 18.6% from the previous year.