Low cost airlines help Zadar Airport grow

Yesterday’s Slobodna Dalmacija featured an interesting article on passenger numbers at Zadar Airport, with 2010’s seasonal flight timetable coming to an end this past weekend.

This article reveals that this year, 270,000 passengers passed through the airport, which adds up to a very healthy 28% increase on 2009 – and a massive jump from 2006, when only 65,000 passengers travelled through.

64% of travellers arriving at the airport flew with Ryanair, which has links from eleven European cities in England, Scotland, Germany, Ireland, Belgium, Sweden, Italy and Norway to Zadar. Germanwings flights from four cities accounted for 17% of passenger traffic at the airport.

In total, 80% of passengers at Zadar Airport arrive with low-cost airlines, which has helped the airport considerably over the years; only six years ago, the airport was threatened with the possibility of closure due to low usage. Benefits to the area are easy to imagine – and, in fact, a study was conducted last year that showed how 80,000 tourists arriving with Ryanair and Germanwings  earn the local economy €40 million.

Low-cost flights to Zadar Airport are due to start up again on 28th March 2011, though routes are yet to be confirmed. Lufthansa, however,  has stated that it will increase the number of flights it operates to the Dalmatian airport up to three flights per week.

Source: Slobodna Dalmacija