intercontinental flights

Air Canada to maintain year-round Barcelona-Toronto route, with at least 3 direct flights per week

April 9, 2015 09:59 PM | ACN

Air Canada announced on Thursday that it will be linking Barcelona El Prat and Toronto Pearson airports all year round, expanding its activities in the winter season. The Canadian airline currently offers seasonal flights connecting the two cities on a daily basis, only available in summer. As from 1 November 2015, it will also offer 3 non-stop flights per week in each direction - on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays – served by a Boeing 767 aircraft.  The flights connecting Barcelona to Montreal will remain seasonal (only during the summer) for the time being. Santi Vila, Catalan Minister for Planning and Sustainability, has hailed Air Canada's announcement as "excellent news", which will foster the competitiveness of Barcelona El Prat Airport, increasing its intercontinental services, which will be added to a vast network of short- and medium-distance flights.    

American Airlines and Vueling to connect short and long-distance flights through Barcelona El Prat

March 19, 2015 09:20 PM | ACN

Vueling and American Airlines signed on Thursday an agreement to foster the interconnection of their flights through Barcelona El Prat Airport and Rome-Fiumicino so as to increase their destination network. The Barcelona-based airline offers 140 destinations from the Catalan capital to Europe, the Middle-East and Africa, and 55 from the Italian airport. American Airlines clients will be able to take a flight to Barcelona and transfer to a Vueling flight using a single ticket and pick up their luggage at their destination airport. In addition, Vueling clients will be able to take a flight to Barcelona and fly onwards to New York, Miami, Philadelphia and Charlotte through American Airlines or its subsidiary US Airways. This strategic agreement links Europe's widest network of short- and medium-distance flights, which is operated by Vueling through Barcelona, with transatlantic routes linking the Old Continent to important hubs in the United States.

Norwegian opens Southern Europe headquarters in Barcelona and announces flights to the US by 2016

January 28, 2015 10:41 PM | ACN

The low-cost airline Norwegian Air Shuttle announced it may connect Barcelona to 5 United States cities by 2016: San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Miami and Orlando. The cheapest roundtrip tickets would be less than $300, stated the Scandinavian company’s Founder and CEO, Bjorn Kjos. The announcement was made on the day Norwegian unveiled its headquarters for Southern Europe, based at Barcelona El Prat Airport. The low-cost airline has transformed the Catalan capital’s main airport into one of its main operational bases worldwide. In 2014 alone, Norwegian increased by 36% the number of passengers it transported through the airport. Last year, Barcelona El Prat broke its passenger record with 37.5 million people. The Catalan Minister for Transport, Santi Vila, stressed that Norwegian’s plans contribute to transforming Barcelona El Prat into an intercontinental hub.

Barcelona El Prat Airport registers a record 37.5 million passengers for 2014

January 14, 2015 10:44 PM | ACN

The number of passengers going through Catalonia’s main airport grew by 6.7% in 2014 compared to 2013. In total, some 37,559,044 people travelled through Barcelona El Prat Airport, the first time this has broken the 37 million mark. The number of flights also increased, by 2.7%, with 283,850 involving the Catalan capital’s main airport. Furthermore, the amount of transported goods increased by 2.4%, with more than 102,000 tonnes of cargo. The type of passenger that registered the highest increase was travellers from within the European Union, which grew by 10.5% in 2014. All the markets registered positive figures except European flights from outside the EU and the Schengen Area, due to a drop in Russian tourists. The Asian market grew by 18.4% and those of the Middle East and Africa by 14.8% and 13.8% respectively.

Barcelona El Prat Airport reaches more than 35 million passengers between January and November

December 11, 2014 09:44 PM | ACN

The number of passengers travelling through the main Catalan airport continues to grow year after year. Between January and November, 35.1 million people used this infrastructure, which represents a 6.8% increase from the same period in 2013. In the first 11 months of 2014, the number of passengers almost reached the global passenger figure for the whole of 2013: 35.2 million. In monthly terms, Barcelona El Prat posted a 3.8% passenger growth in November, reaching 2,473,568 passengers. EU passengers increased by 8.5%, while passengers from non-EU international flights dropped by 3.4% from November 2013 and those from domestic flights decreased by 0.2%. These figures coincide with a great increase of intercontinental passengers going through Madrid Barajas, which increased its global number of passengers by 9.3% in November, after years of drops. Besides, the airline Norwegian has announced the opening of 5 new routes from Barcelona.

Flights from Barcelona El Prat increase by 6.8% for winter season, while Girona shrinks by 20%

October 24, 2014 08:02 PM | ACN

The Spanish Airport Authority (AENA) has announced that this coming winter season over 8.4 million seats will be on offer on flights out of Barcelona El Prat Airport, an increase of 6.8% compared to last year. Seats on intercontinental destinations have increased by 13.6% over last year. The number of flight operations (take-offs and landings) is anticipated to be 47,000: an increase of 4.1% to 2013. In contrast, the airport of Girona Costa Brava (northern Catalonia) has announced it will offer 16 routes this winter season, 20% less than last year. Ryanair has implemented the cuts it announced last May and will no longer be connecting Girona to London or Paris. Ryanair and Wizz Air will be the only airlines flying from Girona to Kiev, and only Ten Airwais will operate charter flights to Nador, Morocco. This summer, Girona airport connected passengers to 69 destinations.

Barcelona El Prat Airport overtook Madrid Barajas once again in August

September 8, 2014 10:44 PM | ACN

For the second consecutive year, Catalonia's main airport hosted more passengers than its Madrid competitor during the month of August, becoming the busiest airfield in Spain. 4.24 million people travelled through Barcelona El Prat last August, representing an 8.6% increase on the figure from the previous year. Meanwhile, 3.99 million travellers passed through the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport (a +5% growth). In the last few years, the Catalan airport has consistently been gaining passengers, particularly attracted by Barcelona's tourist and business activities as well as by the increase of inter-continental flights, while Madrid's airport was losing passengers for a number of years. However, in the last few months, the Spanish capital has started to gain passengers again, although at a slower pace than Barcelona. The first time the Barcelonan airport overtook Madrid's was in August 2013.

Barcelona El Prat airport exceeds 4 million passengers in one month for the first time ever

August 8, 2014 08:58 PM | ACN

This July, Barcelona El Prat Airport broke a new record by surpassing 4 million passengers in one month. 4,027,585 travellers passed through the main Catalan airport last month, an increase of 4.9% from July 2013. This makes Barcelona's airport the second busiest in Spain, only just beaten by Madrid Barajas Airport, which registered 37,831 passengers more than El Prat this month, a total of 4,065,416. There has also been good news from Girona Costa Brava Airport, which reported a 5.5% growth in aeroplane capacity utilisation this year, despite the falling passengers numbers overall. The amount of airport passengers in Spain as a whole has now increased for the 9th consecutive month and represents a 4% rise from this time last year. 

Barcelona Airport recognised as Europe's best, as its T1 Terminal hosts 111 million passengers in 5 years

June 18, 2014 08:59 PM | ACN

In the five years since it opened, the T1 Terminal of Barcelona El Prat Airport has received over 111 million people, overseen approximately 1.3 million take-off and landing operations and processed 70 million items of luggage. The new airport terminal became operational on 17 June 2009 and marked its fifth anniversary on Tuesday. The new terminal has processed twice as many passengers in this period than the older T2 terminal. In addition, Barcelona El Prat Airport was on Tuesday night announced as the best airport in Europe, at the ACI (Airport Council International) Europe Awards 2014 held in Frankfurt. It was the second time the airport has received this accolade.

Barcelona El Prat Airport is about to overtake Madrid Barajas in passenger figures

June 10, 2014 08:51 PM | ACN

In May 2014 the Catalan airfield recorded 3,397,097 passengers, a 5.5% increase on May last year. Madrid's international airport exceeded this number with a total 3,544,649 passengers, 147,562 more than its Catalan rival, with a 4.1% growth. Madrid's airport has recovered from the 10% losses registered over the last 2 years, but it grows much slower than its Catalan competitor. One of the reasons for Barcelona's growth is the notable increase of intercontinental flyers. In the first 5 months of 2014, 13,517,143 people flew from Barcelona, a 7% increase from the same period in 2013. The equivalent figure from Madrid is 15,808,392, representing a 2.8% increase. Meanwhile, the number of passengers arriving at Girona- Costa Brava Airport, continues to decline, with a fall of 20% since 2013.

Record 35.2 million passengers at Barcelona El Prat Airport in 2013

January 10, 2014 07:40 PM | ACN

Barcelona’s El Prat Airport has ended 2013 strongly to reach a new record of 35.2 million passengers, amounting to a 0.2% increase over the previous year in a context of economic crisis. According to figures released by the Spanish Airport Authority (AENA), in December 2013, 2.3 million passengers transited through El Prat, meaning 5.3% more than during the same month last year. On the other hand, Madrid’s Barajas Airport continues on a downward trend, with its yearly number of passengers dropping to 39.7 million, an 11% decrease. Girona Airport, the second largest in Catalonia, has registered negative figures for the fifth consecutive year. However, this latest decrease has been more moderate (-3.8 %) than during previous years and in 2013 it received 2.74 million passengers.

23% more intercontinental passengers at Barcelona El Prat Airport

December 11, 2013 05:21 PM | ACN

Barcelona’s El Prat Airport has again registered positive passenger figures in November with the number of people transiting through its facilities reaching 2.38 million, 4.5% more compared to November 2012. Furthermore, the number of intercontinental passengers grew by 22.8 %. According to the Spanish Airport Authority (AENA), El Prat is currently on an upward trend. On the other hand, Madrid Barajas Airport registered 2.98 million passengers in November, representing a 5.3 % decrease compared to the same month last year. Since January 2013, 32,903,000 passengers have transited through Barcelona El Prat, a 0.2% decrease compared to the first eleven months of 2012. At Spanish level, the figures registered a 3.9% drop due to the economic crisis.

Barcelona El Prat Airport hosts the world’s third largest offer of low-cost airline seats

September 27, 2013 10:00 PM | ACN

The Catalan capital’s airport is the world’s third largest centre for low-cost flights. Two thirds of the seats on offer from or to Barcelona El Prat Airport are managed by low-cost companies. All Europe’s main low-cost airlines fly to Barcelona. This confirms Barcelona’s tourist attractiveness. In addition, this type of air traffic has enabled the Catalan airport to become one of Europe’s main airports. For the first time, last August more passengers went through Barcelona El Prat than through Madrid-Barajas, which means El Prat was Spain’s main airport. This might be a key asset when low-cost airlines also operate transcontinental flights.