Press release -
Swedavia’s traffic statistics for May 2022
The rapid recovery in air travel continued in May, and with more than 2.6 million passengers Swedavia set a new record for a single month since the start of the pandemic. The strong growth is driven mainly by an increase in international travel, especially at Stockholm Arlanda, where air travel has increased sharply within a short period of time. Compared to the start of the year, both January as well as February, the airport handled one million more passengers in May, and overall passenger volume reached the highest level since December 2019. Swedavia continues to expand its operations at Arlanda in order to meet the strong increase in travel and a number of important launches of service in June, including new direct routes to Toronto and New York. On June 15, Terminal 4 will be placed in service and another security checkpoint will be in operation.
Swedavia’s ten airports had a total of more than 2.6 million passengers in May, an increase of a full 492 per cent compared to May 2021. May is the strongest month for travel so far since the start of the pandemic. Compared to 2019, before the pandemic, 73 per cent of passengers are now back at Swedavia’s airports, with Stockholm Arlanda Airport seeing the greatest recovery in passenger volume.
“May is generally a big travel month, and Arlanda had a number of the most travel-intensive days at our airports so far since the start of the pandemic. The strong recovery continued both in European and domestic travel, and traffic is now increasing week after week. As a result of the pandemic, there is a pent-up need to travel to meet friends and family and to take a holiday. Airlines’ continued investments in the improved range of routes on offer are further driving this growth. In June, there will be a number of major service launches, both to North America and Europe,” says Jonas Abrahamsson, Swedavia’s president and CEO.
The strong demand for air travel is thus expected to continue in June and, combined with a number of launches, will contribute to increased growth in passenger volume. Starting in June, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) will launch a brand-new route to Toronto, Canada. The American carrier Delta Air Lines is returning to Arlanda with service to New York, and Nile Air will launch service to Cairo. Another 16 European routes from Arlanda and three from Göteborg Landvetter will also be launched.
“We are carrying out a number of extraordinary measures to boost staffing and increase the rate of flow at our security checkpoints at Arlanda in order to meet the continued strong passenger growth. This, together with the opening of Terminal 4 and an additional security checkpoint on June 15, will have an effect, but with a continued rise in passenger volumes there will nevertheless be a risk of longer queues than normal at Arlanda at times. At our nine other airports, the queuing situation is normal for the season,” notes Jonas Abrahamsson.
Of the total 2.6 million passengers in May, 1,878,000 were international passengers and 760,000 were domestic passengers. International travel decreased 24 per cent while domestic travel decreased 34 per cent compared to May 2019, before the pandemic. However, at an annualised rate, the total increase was 492 per cent in May.
Stockholm Arlanda Airport, Sweden’s largest airport, had 1,741,000 passengers in May, which is a decrease of 24 per cent compared to May 2019. Compared to May last year, travel increased 542 per cent in May. Compared to May 2019, 72 per cent of domestic travel and 77 per cent of international travel is back.
Göteborg Landvetter Airport had a total of 427,000 passengers in May. That is a decrease of 29 per cent compared to May 2019. Compared to May 2021, passenger volume increased 564 per cent. International travel decreased 25 per cent while domestic travel decreased 47 per cent compared to May 2019 and pre-pandemic levels.
Bromma Stockholm Airport had 111,000 passengers in May. That is a decrease of 54 per cent compared to May 2019. International travel decreased 64 per cent while domestic travel decreased 52 per cent compared to May 2019. Compared to May 2021, passenger volumes increased from very low levels, by 423 per cent, since the airport had hardly any commercial air traffic.
Malmö Airport had a total of 132,000 passengers in May. That is a decrease of 33 per cent compared to May 2019. International travel decreased 21 per cent while domestic travel decreased 42 per cent compared to May 2019. Compared to May 2021, passenger volume increased 329 per cent.
Swedavia’s six regional airports had greatly improved passenger volumes in May compared to May last year, though at levels that are still below passenger volumes in May 2019. Kiruna Airport and Luleå Airport had the biggest recovery of Swedavia’s airports in May compared to May 2019, with passenger volumes nearly comparable to pre-pandemic levels.
Air travel at Swedavia’s ten airports has decreased by a total of nearly 65 million passengers since the start of the pandemic 27 months ago.
More detailed information about Swedavia’s traffic figures and statistics is available (in Swedish) on Swedavia’s website: Statistik | Om Swedavia
Tips for passengers before their journey: Everything you need to know before your trip | Stockholm Arlanda Airport (swedavia.se)
For further information, please contact Swedavia’s press office at +46 (0)10-109 01 00 or
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The Swedavia Group owns, operates and develops ten airports across Sweden. Our role is to create the access Sweden needs to facilitate travel, business and meetings. Safe, satisfied passengers are the foundation of Swedavia’s business. Swedavia is a world leader in developing airports with the least possible environmental impact. In 2021, the Group had annual revenue of about 2.7 billion Swedish kronor and nearly 2,300 employees.
