New Year's Report

2023 - a year of recovery with very satisfactory traffic figures / Lufthansa Group the most important customer / Around 1.66 million passengers  aimed at for 2024 / Varied flight program for summer 2024 / Over 6 million euros invested in 2023 / 17 February the peak day for both arrivals (98 landings) and departures (97 take-offs) this season

Salzburg's winter sports regions are reporting record numbers again. Almost all of the tourists who were absent in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid have returned. This not only pleases tourism businesses, but also Salzburg Airport, as these figures are reflected in the traffic data. In the past financial year 2023, 1,614,601 passengers used Salzburg Airport  - an increase of 31.3% compared to the previous year. "An increase of 31.3% in passenger numbers with only 15.7% growth in flight movements clearly showsthe excellent load factor of the aircrafts to and from Salzburg. I am pleased that we are approaching the traffic figures of the pre-crisis years again, but catching up will not be completed until 2025 at the earliest," says Bettina Ganghofer, CEO of Salzburg Airport. If you "only" look at the traffic figures for the second half of 2023, Salzburg Airport would already have reached over 91.6% of the pre-crisis level in terms of passenger numbers, but at the end of the year, the whole year counts.

Factsheet 2023 (percentage change on the previous year's figures 2022)

The airport's primary goal is to maintain and moderately expand the existing network in order to be able to offer the region a suitable destination portfolio. In addition to detailed market research and market observation, an intensive exchange between the airport and airline partners is important in order to retain or gain attractive airlines and alliances for Salzburg

A look ahead to the 2023/2024 winter season

Right now, the city and province of Salzburg are enjoying snow, cold weather and fun on the slopes. Guests appreciate the variety: from the slopes to the thermal baths, from the hotel to the old town with a historic stroll and exclusive cuisine, souvenirs and lots of culture to shopping fun in the shopping centers around Salzburg and the traditional après-ski in the regions. "We are very satisfied with the start to the 2023/2024 winter season, the guests are coming and the tourism industry is also looking forward to the next months with confidence. The airport is enormously important for our location during this time," says Deputy Governor Stefan Schnöll, Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

The winter service is already in full operation at the airport. On December 23, almost 70 landing aircrafts were welcomed and the team at the airport is well prepared for the next three months. As every year, the winter season in particular is a major challenge for employees, equipment and infrastructure. "The guests mainly come from Germany, Great Britain and Scandinavia, but also from Turkey and the Arab countries. Salzburg is known and popular as a winter destination across all borders. The airport functions as the classic 'gateway to the alps'. For guests, this means getting off the plane with curiosity, taking in Salzburg's scenery, preferably with snow as a first impression, and starting their vacation full of expectations," Ganghofer continues.
It's not just companies with international branches that want to get to and from Salzburg quickly and easily, vacationers also appreciate the fast arrival and departure times. On the one hand, guests from abroad who want to enjoy Salzburg's mountain scenery, on the other hand, people in the airport's catchment area who want to spend a vacation far away. The airport and its partners meet these needs and connect people and continents with good flight connections. For destinations that cannot be reached by direct flight from Salzburg, there are many hubs offering opportunities to discover destinations worldwide.

Airport as an investor in the region: just over 6 million euros invested in 2023 

Airports are not only large infrastructure facilities for flight operations, but also offer guests much more, from shopping facilities to restaurants. Efficiency is key here. It is important to be able to compete in the market. Every product, every purchase and every tool for the airport's infrastructure has a clearly defined life cycle. "We know exactly when it is time to repair something, when something needs to be replaced or completely redesigned. The airport terminal project is a classic example for this. Over the next few years, we therefore want to create a modern, functional, energy-saving and future-proof terminal that meets all legal and structural requirements in addition to passenger demands," says Schnöll about the terminal construction plans for the next few years.

Urgently needed investments were made in 2023 to ensure that the airport's infrastructure remains state of the art.  Due to the high security requirements concerning baggage screening, EU Standard 3 equipment had to be implemented in the HBS area (€1.5 million) and the baggage handling system had to be converted accordingly (€1.4 million). The EES (biometric entry/exit system), a large-scale IT system for automatically monitoring the travel movements of third-country nationals at the external borders of the Schengen area, was also specified by the EU (€0.98 million). A photovoltaic system was installed on the parking lot roof (€0.46 million), IT (hardware and software amounting to €0.46 million), around €0.316 million was required for adaptations and the purchase of new equipment in order to approach the goal of net carbon neutrality (passenger bus conversion to electric drive, sweeper, forklift, electric car, various small appliances) and around EUR 0.6 million for construction measures and various small projects. Smaller items related to materials for the fire department (€0.52 million) and various requirements from the specialist departments. "After we had to save money in 2020, 2021 and 2022 and many projects were postponed or suspended, it was possible to make up for some of these investments in 2023. In total, more than 6 million euros were invested in the future of Salzburg, because a well-situated airport benefits the entire region," says Ganghofer about the urgently needed investments.

A look ahead to summer 2024

In addition to the classic city flights to Germany (Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg), England is also strongly represented in the flight schedule again with London (Gatwick, Luton and Stansted). You can visit the Dutch capital Amsterdam as well as Belgrade by direct flight. From April, Wizz Air will also be flying to Skopje and Bucharest three times a week.

PURE summer vacation – ‘Reisetag’ at Europark 

Greece has almost traditionally been the top destination on holidaymakers' wish lists every summer. In addition to Karpathos, Corfu, Crete/Heraklion, Rhodes, Thessaloniki/Chalkidiki and Zakynthos, Kos - with even more flights this summer - is also a fixed part of the Greek program. Sun, beach and sea are also guaranteed by the Egypt destinations Hurghada (4 times a week, all year round) and Marsa Alam, which is offered until the end of April. Diving, enjoying the beach, walking in the footsteps of thousands of years of Egyptian history, enjoying all-inclusive luxury - all this ensures a relaxing vacation. Incidentally, the Balearic Islands of Majorca will be offered again from mid-March and Ibiza from the end of April. Friends of the Canary Islands can fly to Gran Canaria and Tenerife until the end of April. The islands of Corsica (Calvi), Sardinia (Olbia) and Cyprus (Larnaca) are particularly popular among Austrians. Pure water fun is guaranteed. Tunisia is back on the flight schedule at Salzburg Airport! Nouvleair Tunisie will be flying to Monastir until this summer. There will also be flights to Antalya in Turkey and Lamezia Terme in Calabria. The major international airport hubs such as Frankfurt, Istanbul and Dubai make it easy to reach destinations worldwide with just one stopover. 
All information about the summer flight schedule and travel options from and to Salzburg will be available at the SN Reisetag on 20 January 2024 at Europark. Over 30 exhibitors - from local travel agencies to airlines - will provide fascinating insights into the world of travel.

Please find further information here: www.salzburg-airport.at