Passenger traffic at Munich Airport rises to new all-time high of 44.6 million

Take-offs and landings up 2.6% to over 400,000

Munich Airport’s dynamic growth continued in 2017 with new traffic records in several categories: Passenger traffic increased by an impressive 2.3 million to a new all-time high of 44.6 million. This was a 5.5 percent gain over the 2016 figure. The airport also saw a strong surge in take-offs and landings, with an increase of more than 10,000 to approximately 405,000 – a gain of 2.6 percent. Without the reduction in services by Air Berlin in the summer period, followed by that airline’s bankruptcy, the increase would have been even bigger. Another record is reported by the airfreight segment, which achieved a total turnover of around 379,000 tons in 2017 – a 7 percent gain over the previous year.

“These are outstanding traffic figures, especially when we consider the turbulence the aviation industry is currently experiencing. The massive increases once again underscore our airport’s importance as one of the leading air transportation hubs in Europe,” said Dr. Michael Kerkloh, the President and CEO of Munich Airport.

As in previous years, passenger growth in Munich benefited in particular from above-average gains in international traffic: The strongest growth was seen in the intercontinental segment, where traffic increased by 7 percent to 7.3 million passengers. Demand was strong especially for connections from Munich to destinations in the USA. Continental services remained the largest traffic segment with a total of 27.4 million passengers – 6.5 percent more than in 2016. Within Europe, the strongest growth was seen on routes to and from Greece and Spain. On domestic routes within Germany, traffic increased by more than 2 percent to over 9.8 million passengers. The percentage of seats occupied was up again in 2017, increasing to a new record level of 76.5 percent.

Munich also expanded its global route network yet again: With 266 destinations – nine more than in the previous year – passengers at Bavaria’s international hub had more routes to choose from than ever before. The number of airlines offering scheduled services in Munich increased by two to 102.

FMG (Flughafen München GmbH), incorporated in 1949, operates Munich Airport, which opened at its present site on May 17, 1992. It is jointly owned by the Free State of Bavaria (51 percent), the Federal Republic of Germany (26 percent) and the city of Munich (23 percent). The FMG corporate group, with its 15 subsidiaries, employs more than 9,000 people. With a total workforce of about 35,000, employed by about 550 companies, Munich Airport is one of Bavaria’s largest workplaces. Within just a few years of opening, Munich Airport developed into a major air transportation hub and was firmly established as one of Europe’s 10 busiest airports. Munich Airport now offers connections to more than 250 destinations all over the world. In 2016 Bavaria’s gateway to the world has handled approximately 400,000 flights with over 42 million passengers. Bavaria’s gateway to the world became the first – and is so far the only – airport in Europe to be honored with the prestigious title of “5-Star Airport” by the London-based Skytrax Institute.