The airport handled 12.9% more flights in Q1
Málaga-Costa del Sol Airport closed the first quarter of 2017 with an increase in both passenger numbers and flight operations. When compared to the same period in 2016 there was an increase of 13.7% in passenger numbers, while the airport handled 12.9% more flights. Between January and March 2017, the airport handled 2,982,158 travellers and 23,797 flights.
It is worth noting that in 2016 Semana Santa (Easter) was in March while in 2017 it was in April. This means this year’s Semana Santa traffic will be included in the figures for the second quarter. This makes the increase even more impressive as despite last year’s Q1 figures including Easter travellers, 2017 still recorded an increase.
The bulk of passengers using Malaga airport in Q1 were on commercial flights, with the majority being carried on international flights. There was a 16.1% increase in the number of international travellers, while the number of international flights increased by 17.4%.
Almost half a million passengers travelled from Malaga to other Spanish cities, representing an increase of 2.6%. However, the number of domestic flights in or out of Malaga fell by 2%.
March
In March, the UK remained as the main source and destination for flights passing through Malaga. The airport handled 367,246 British travellers, 16.3% more than in March last year. German passengers were the next most numerous with just short of one hundred thousand, followed by Dutch travellers (73,067).
In terms of passenger numbers the busiest day in March was the last Sunday of the month, the 26th. On this day, the staff at Malaga airport handled 52,080 passengers. The busiest day in terms of flight operations was the last day, Friday 31st, when the airport managed the take-off and landing of 371 flights.
Parking
It is also worth mentioning that Malaga airport have added new parking facilities close to arrivals. The new lot has 91 spaces for light vehicles. Among the spaces there are several spaces reserved for those with reduced mobility.
AENA say the new parking seeks to improve the quality of the facilities on offer by meeting the demand for better parking in the proximity of the arrivals hall. Until now it was impossible to park close to arrivals and drivers had to use the main departures car park.
The new spaces are located close to the RENFE train station.
