2015 has been an exceptional year in goods transport by air for Liege Airport. 650 000 tonnes transited through our airport, i.e. an increase of 10%. Passenger activity has remained stable. Investment to the tune of € 16 million will underpin development in 2016.
Performance in 2015
Liege Airport has strengthened its position as the leading cargo airport in Belgium, with 649 829 tonnes of freight compared with 590 579 tonnes in 2014, which represents a 10% increase. „The new airlines – Qatar Airways and ANA Aviation – have boosted our activity”, explains Luc Partoune, General Manager of Liege Airport. „And TNT has also shown very strong growth. CAL, El Al and Icelandair are also on the up.” As for the number of passengers, it has remained stable with 299 292 passengers carried, compared with 302 813 in 2014 (-1.16%). „It was a rather difficult year, with a considerable drop in Thomas Cook’s activities, discontinuation of flights to Tunisia, Egypt following the attacks, the end of activities of VLM and BMI who operated here for a short while only.” However, passenger activities are consolidated by the arrival of huge numbers of Chinese tourists: „We are the first airport in Europe that has met this challenge, i.e. attracting and retaining U-Tour, the first Chinese tour operator in Europe.” The number of aircraft movements decreased by 2.61%, from 42 140 movements in 2014 to 41 039 this year.
It should be noted that 2015 was marked by major international recognition as Liege Airport received the Best Cargo Airport in Europe award in Singapore in October. And Ethiopian Airlines, the airport’s second customer, won the title of best cargo airline in the world for
2015.
As regards real estate, Liege Airport also successfully pursues its diversification strategy through its Liege Airport Business Park subsidiary: a new ultra modern office building has been completed in the northern zone and it will be fully occupied by early February.
Prospects for 2016
There are encouraging prospects for 2016 as regards passenger traffic with connections between China and Liège doubling, from three to six flights a week. The investment programme of Liege Airport for 2016 amounts to € 10 million, with plans including the construction of a new business aviation area, creation of aircraft stands in the north, continuation of energy-saving investment with moves towards tri-generation, etc.
Moreover, investment in the Liege Airport Business Park will rise to € 6 million: a new freight hall in the northern zone, a storage facility, etc.
The building serving as a reception centre for horses will be operational early June and will therefore be used to send the best horses in the world to the Olympic Games in Rio. Year upon year, Liege Airport confirms its role as a major economic player serving a whole
region.
Source / Author: Liege Airport