Finavia’s statistics for 2021: Air tourism recovered towards the end of the year – Lapland’s airports had a great Christmas season
In 2021, a total of 5.4 million people traveled through Finavia’s airports. Air traffic began to recover significantly in the second half of the year. The number of passengers exceeded one million in December, a record for the pandemic period.
“The year 2021 showed that air traffic will recover as soon as the pandemic subsides. People want to travel. Air traffic picked up in July after travel restrictions were lifted, ”He says Petri Vuori, Finavia’s Vice President, Sales and Route Development.
Passenger numbers were highest on the German, Spanish and Swedish routes. Traffic to Asia was low throughout the year. International transfer passengers accounted for about 15 percent of the total number of passengers.
The number of passengers at Helsinki-Vantaa in 2021 rose to 4.3 million. About 80 percent of passengers flew on international flights. December was the busiest period when the number of passengers at the airport rose to almost a million.
“Helsinki-Vantaa’s new departure and arrival halls opened just at Christmas. More space and new services will be available as early as next spring, when, for example, the latest security controls will be introduced. The Helsinki-Vantaa development program will be completed in its entirety in 2023, ”Says Vuori.
The number of passengers at Finavia’s regional airports in 2021 was 1.1 million. During the year, several new international flights were opened to Rovaniemi Airport, Kittilä Airport, Tampere Airport and Turku Airport.
“In addition to charter flights, direct scheduled flights from Europe’s largest cities to our regional airports are increasing. We at Finavia have been working hard for several years to encourage airlines to fly here and we have marketed Finland as an attractive destination. These efforts are now bearing fruit,“The mountain explains.
Great Christmas time for Finavia’s Lapland airports
The year 2021 culminated in an excellent Christmas season for Finavia’s Lapland airports. There were 690 charter flights arriving, which is as much as six percent more than before the pandemic in 2019.
“The number of tourist flights increased, especially at Kittilä and Kuusamo airports. We have invested EUR 60 million in tourism in Lapland, expanded our airports and significantly improved the level of service. Lapland has a strong attraction and we believe in the growth of tourism”, The mountain adds.
| 2021 | 2019 | |
| Rovaniemi | 238 | 237 |
| Kittilä | 268 | 240 |
| Ivalo | 108 | 124 |
| Kuusamo | 78 | 60 |
Passengers at Finavia’s airports 2020-2021
Statistical summary and development of passenger numbers in 2021, 2020 and 2019
| To | January-December / 2021 | January-December / 2020 | January-December / 2019 * |
| Total passengers at Finavia airports | 5,376,841
-16% |
6,400,670
-75% |
26,023,895
+ 4% |
| Passengers at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport | 4,261,431
-16% |
5,053,206
-77% |
21,861,082
+ 5% |
| Departing international transfer passengers at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport | 393 089
-45% |
713 626
-80% |
3,571,902
+ 15% |
| Total cargo traffic at Finavia’s airports | 178,684
+ 21% |
147,296
-37% |
234 461
+ 13% |
| Cargo volume at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport | 175,765
+ 23% |
141,332
-38% |
229 532
+ 13% |
| Total number of commercial flights at Finavia airports | 91,635
-2% |
93,640
-63% |
125,869
0% |
| Total number of commercial flights at Helsinki-Vantaa | 68,403
-1% |
69,287
-64% |
95,097
+1% |
* Figures for 2019 are compared to 2018
