Major growth in Athens airport arrivals

By Alexandra Kassimi

Athens International Airport continues to break records one after another, as passenger traffic through the country?s biggest terminal posted a 24.5 percent increase in the month of March to climb to 1.1 million for the first time since 2010.

A total of 693,756 international passengers passed through AIA in March, up 20 percent from the same month last year, according to data released on Thursday by the airport. The rise in domestic traffic was even greater, amounting to 33.2 percent from March 2014, coming to some 405,000. Greek travelers increased by a considerable 21 percent, posting a 36 percent rise on the domestic flights through AIA. Foreign visitors whose final destination was Athens recorded a 29 percent jump.

Athens Airport enjoyed a 25.7 percent rise in total traffic in the first quarter of the year compared to Q1 of 2014, reaching almost 3 million passengers. International traffic rose 19.7 percent in the year to end-March, while the number of Greek travelers took off by 23 percent, with a 39 percent rise on domestic flights. Just as in the month of March, foreign visitors with Athens as their final destination increased 29 percent in the first quarter, illustrating the return of the Greek capital?s attraction as a winter destination.

There has also been an increase in flights to Athens Airport, amounting to 31,691 in the first quarter of the year, up 17.1 percent from the same period in 2014. In March the rise in the number of flights reached 18.6 percent.

Last year had ended with 21.3 percent annual growth in passengers, who came to 15.2 million. International traffic rose 20.5 percent and domestic arrivals ended their decline and grew 22.5 percent.