TAV MACEDONIA: BOTH AIRPORTS WITH 20% GROWTH IN THE NUMBER OF PASSENGERS WITHIN THE FIRST NINE MONTHS

TAV MACEDONIA: BOTH AIRPORTS WITH 20% GROWTH IN THE NUMBER OF PASSENGERS WITHIN THE FIRST NINE MONTHS

Skopje Alexander the Great Airport lately is becoming more interesting for Kosovo, Albania and Southern Serbia travellers, who choose the Macedonian capital as starting point for their trips to Europe and the world, the airport operator officials say

Both Macedonian airports, Skopje Alexander the Great and Ohrid St. Paul the Apostle, ended the first nine months of this year with total 1.183.728 passengers, which is an increase of 20% compared to the same period last year, TAV Macedonia, the company operating both Macedonian airfields, officials inform.

-Unlike the European Union airports, whereby in August the average growth of the number of passengers is 5,2%, we mark  a 30% increase in the number of passengers at Skopje and  Ohrid airports in September, compared to the same month last year. Such double digit increases, both on a monthly basis, and for the entire period of the first nine months of this year, are due to the TAV Holding marketing policies for attracting new airlines and increasing the existing frequencies from the Macedonian airports. At the same time, the support by the Government for the low-budget airlines is of great help for the continuous growth of the total air traffic, as well as the growing presence of foreign tourists in Macedonia, our expatriates who often visit their homeland, and the young people who want to travel and discover new destinations, Zoran Krstevski, General Manager of TAV Macedonia said.

Krstevski adds that recently the interest of the citizens from the neighbouring countries, such as Kosovo, Albania and Southern Serbia has significantly increased for travelling through Skopje Alexander the Great Airport, which implies its positioning as a main hub among the airports in the region. TAV Macedonia officials say that they expect the trend of increase of the air traffic at Skopje Alexander the Great Airport and Ohrid St. Paul the Apostle Airport to further continue, as a result of the new 8 routes introduced this year from both airports – six from Skopje to Geneva, Friedrichshafen, Oslo, Barcelona, Hamburg and Nuremberg, and two from Ohrid to London and Basel.

During the first nine months, 1.183.728 passengers were transported through Skopje Alexander the Great Airport and Ohrid St. Paul the Apostle Airport, with an increase by 20% compared to the same period last year.

The number of air traffic operations at Skopje and Ohird airports that hosted 11.695 flights  from January until September this year increased by 10%.

Istanbul (both airports, Ataturk and Sabiha Gokcen), with 14,4% market share in the total air traffic, is still the most frequent destination from Alexander the Great, followed by Zurich, Vienna, Malmo, Basel and London (Luton).

Regarding the airlines, Wizz Air has transported greatest number of passengers within the period January-September with 49% market share, and it is followed by Turkish Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Pegasus Airlines, Air Serbia and Edelweiss.