In June, more than 281 thousand passengers passed through Tallinn Airport, almost three times more than in the same period last year. This was 87% of the level before the corona pandemic. The average load factor on routes was already close to 80 percent in June, indicating the continuation of very broad-based demand.
According to Eero Pärgmäe, Member of the Management Board of Tallinn Airport, the tourism and aviation sector is becoming a reliable and strong employer again, but the long process of rebuilding competences and training has led to a difficult situation in the entire aviation sector. “”Compared to Europe, Estonia is doing quite well. We’re working hard with G4S and other partners to continue to improve the manning situation,” Pärgmäe said, but added that the difficult situation in Europe will probably continue until the end of this summer season. “The quality of service should improve in October and November, as this is the start of the low season for flights, passenger numbers will decrease and we can concentrate on preparations for the next summer. Last winter, with no end to corona in sight, airports and airlines didn’t dare to start actively recruiting new staff. Uncertainty was further heightened by the war that started at the end of February. However, today we can see that passenger volumes will soon be at the same levels as before the corona epidemic and the sector needs to quickly restore its pre-crisis service capacity,” Pärgmäe added.
The most popular destination from Tallinn in June was Antalya, with a total of almost 25 thousand passengers on regular and charter flights. There are up to 5 flights a day from Tallinn to the Turkish resort of Antalya. Traditionally, routes to the major hubs in Helsinki, Frankfurt and Riga attracted large numbers of passengers.
The airlines that brought the most passengers in June were Air Baltic and Ryanair, each accounting for a fifth of all passengers. Air Baltic offers 13 direct flights from Tallinn and Ryanair offers 15 direct flights. In line with the season, package holidays to the coasts of Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria, as well as the resort of Tivat in Montenegro, were the most popular among charter passengers.
Tallinn Airport has served 1.2 million passengers in the first half of the year. In 2021, a total of 283 thousand passengers were served during the same period. “We remind everyone that this is the peak season for flights and there may still be queues at Tallinn Airport during peak hours, so we advise all passengers to arrive at the airport 2 hours before departure,” said Pärgmäe. “Considering the difficult situation in European aviation and airports, our advice is to be prepared for the unexpected, to be patient and to have time, to prefer direct flights if possible and to purchase travel insurance before the trip.”
In June, Kuressaare Airport served 3,591 passengers and Kärdla served 1,294 passengers, an increase of 18% and 5%, respectively, compared to June last year. Tartu Airport handled 1,234 passengers, the vast majority of whom used the regular connection to Helsinki. Pärnu Airport was used by 437 passengers, who also flew mainly on the Helsinki route. The seasonal flight service from Pärnu to Stockholm was also opened in June, with SAS flying twice a week. There was no commercial air traffic in Pärnu and Tartu last June.