In 2021, 9.4 million passengers passed through Brussels Airport, while cargo volumes grew at a record 30% pace to reach 843,000 tonnes.
In 2021, Brussels Airport welcomed nearly 9.4 million passengers, up 39% on 2020, but still 64% down on 2019. Especially in the first half of the year, the Covid pandemic and the travel restrictions severely impacted passenger numbers that reached only 16% of the passengers in 2019.
In the second half of the year, no fewer than 7.4 million passengers travelled through Brussels Airport, an increase of 56% compared to the same period in 2020 but still 47% below the level of 2019. August was the best month of the year, with nearly 1.5 million passengers, 56% of 2019.
With 843,140 tonnes of cargo handled, our cargo division did exceptionally well! The overall volume increased by no less than 30% compared to 2020! Growth was achieved in all segments: full freighter, integrator, belly cargo and trucked cargo. Especially the full freighter segment performed strongly, with a continuation of the growth with 43% compared to 2020 and a growth of no less than 104% compared to pre-Covid times (2019).
“The demand for air cargo was exceptionally high, and thanks to our investments, digitisation and our strong cargo community, Brussels Airport was able to handle this growth with ease. With our expertise in the transport of pharmaceuticals, as the main hub for the export of vaccines in Europe, we could do our part in the battle against Covid with more than 800 million vaccines transported, and we will undoubtedly continue to do this in the year ahead,” Arnaud Feist, CEO of Brussels Airport Company, explains.
Read our press release for more details.