Airline Passenger Numbers in Finland Continue Nose Dive

A steady decline in the number of passengers moving through Finnish airports continued from the first quarter of 2009 into the second quarter.

Finavia, Finland’s airport management company says between April and June the number of domestic air passengers dropped almost 16 percent compared to the same period in 2008.

On top of the year on year decline, the numbers appear to have plummeted in the second quarter compared to the beginning of the year. From January to March the decline registered 9.7 percent, compared to the dramatic numbers of the second quarter.

The gloomy domestic travel picture was mirrored on the international scene, as airline passengers travelling between Finland and other EU countries slipped by about six percent from last year. However the rate of decline in the numbers of EU travelers has slowed down compared to the beginning of the year, when passenger numbers were down ten percent.

Asia, long held up as a growth market for Finnish air travel, did not buck the trend either. The number of passengers travelling between the East and Finland fell off by nine percent compared to the previous year.

The overall weakening of passenger numbers also made itself felt in Finavia’s business operations. Between April and June this year, turnover amounted to 6.5 million euros – one year earlier the figure stood almost double that at over 12 million euros.

In order to entice more passengers through its airports, Finavia plans to lower the cost of air travel from the beginning of September until the end of December.