Milan Bergamo Airport has experienced remarkable growth in the first half of 2023, with over 7.6 million passengers passing through its doors. This represents a double-digit increase compared to the same period in both 2022 (31% growth) and pre-COVID 2019 (18% growth). The airport is now on track to surpass the success of 2019 and become its most prosperous year to date, welcoming over one million passengers each month. This year, the airport operates with 22 carriers, including three new additions: Georgian Airways (Tbilisi), flydubai (Dubai), and Norwegian Air Shuttle (Bergen and Oslo).
This year, Milan Bergamo Airport has introduced 19 new routes, expanding its network and connectivity. In addition to the inaugural flights of the new carriers, the airport has established links to various destinations such as Comiso, Catania, Heraklion, Karpathos, Lampedusa, Mykonos, and Zakynthos with Aeroitalia; Nantes and Oviedo with Volotea; and Belfast, Brno, Cluj, Iasi, Lublin, and Rijeka with Ryanair.
The airport has solidified its position as Italy’s leading airport in terms of seat capacity and number of served destinations in Poland, surpassing Germany and becoming Milan Bergamo’s fifth-largest country market.
With an ever-expanding route network, Milan Bergamo Airport has witnessed robust growth in several country markets. Notably, the French market has experienced a 30% growth since 2022, representing an impressive 163% increase compared to 2019, thanks to new routes to Paris Charles de Gaulle (easyJet), Nantes (Volotea), and Toulouse (Ryanair). Other markets that have seen significant increases in traffic include Portugal (78% growth compared to 2019 / 51% growth compared to 2022), Netherlands (104% growth compared to 2019 / 30% growth compared to 2022), and Albania (100% growth compared to 2019 / 39% growth compared to 2022).
Giacomo Cattaneo, Director of Commercial Aviation at SACBO, expresses optimism about the airport’s future, stating, “With 2023 already proving to be a record-breaking year for us in terms of passenger numbers, the current trend leads us to expect Milan Bergamo to surpass 15 million passengers this year for the first time in our history. We have expanded our fantastic offering of routes available to our customers this summer, and we have no doubt that our positive traffic growth trend is set to continue.”
In line with the increase in passenger traffic, Milan Bergamo Airport continues to develop its infrastructure to meet the growing demand. Recent developments include a new custom clearance area in the North Apron, improved road accessibility to the Logistic Park, and the opening of ‘P1 east’—an additional short-term parking area. Construction has also commenced on the tunnel connecting the airport terminal to the future station, which will provide an essential direct rail connection to Milan Centrale Station.