In 2024, European airports welcomed over 5 billion passengers, marking a +7.4% increase from 2023 and surpassing pre-pandemic (2019) levels by +1.8%. However, 47% of airports are still below their 2019 volumes, with smaller airports lagging behind (-34.5%).
Key trends included strong international travel demand (+8.8%) and continued post-Covid structural shifts, with leisure and low-cost carrier (LCC) traffic driving growth. The top five busiest airports were London Heathrow, Istanbul, Paris CDG, Amsterdam, and Madrid.
Geopolitical factors and market changes created disparities, with fast-growing aviation markets like Albania (+220.8%) and Uzbekistan (+185.9%) far exceeding pre-pandemic levels, while major markets like Germany (-16.6%) and France (-3.0%) remained below.
Looking ahead, ACI EUROPE forecasts +4% passenger traffic growth in 2025 but warns of risks from economic uncertainty, airline fleet issues, and geopolitical tensions.
