Annual growth of 7.7% and a record 6,000,000 passengers in 2017
In a highly competitive environment, the airport handled an extra half million passengers after 8 years of constant growth (+87% between 2009 and 2017). At the year end, traffic was up by 7.7%, largely thanks to international flights which carried a total of 3 million passengers. If we remove from the equation the Bordeaux-Paris links (Orly and CDG) which faced new competition from the SNCF and its LGV high speed rail link, growth for Bordeaux Airport reached 12% (558,000 new passengers), making 2017 its best performance since the Airport Management Company was created.
The network of flights is increasingly international, with the opening of 17 new routes and the arrival of 5 new airlines (Blue Air, Lufthansa, Air Corsica, Aigle Azur and Wizz Air). At the height of the season, the airport offered 87 scheduled links and a total of 104 routes operated by 31 airlines. It should be noted that air traffic control had to deal with only a 1.9% rise in aircraft movements, contrasting strongly with the increase in passenger traffic, thanks to the airlines’use of higher capacity planes.
2017 saw the announcement of the new easyJet base, planned for spring 2018, which will provide numerous possibilities for the airline’s development.
2017 was also the year in which major projects were confirmed for future airport infrastructure development to keep up with the increase in passenger traffic: creation of an international boarding pier in Hall A, expansion and improvement of the Billi terminal, construction of a junction hall and refurbishment of access roads and car parks to make way for the tram and facilitate access to the airport.