Once the pandemic is over, and the uncontrollable rise in inflation has passed, tourism resumes flight in most countries. Given the good performance of the sector, Vueling consolidated its leadership in the Barcelona-El Prat Airport in 2022 by reaching a passenger share of 41.7%, with 17.39 million passengers out of a total of 41.63 million, of according to the data for the year collected by Aena, the airport manager, and consulted by EFE.
In second place was the airline Ryanair, with 7.43 million passengers, 17.8% of the total, and the Lufthansa group (Deutsche, Eurowings, Swiss International, Brussels Airlines and Austrian Airlines), with 2, 55 million users, 6.13% of the total, and Easyjet, which transported 2.11 million passengers (adding its subsidiaries Europe, the United Kingdom and Switzerland), that is, 5.07% of the total.
In fifth position was Air France-KLM Group (Air France, KLM Royal Dutch, Transavia Holland and Transavia France), with 1.58 million passengers, 3.81% of the total, followed by Iberia (with Level integrated into its figures), which added 1.55 million passengers, 3.74%, and whose position does not change if the 90,233 passengers transported by Air Nostrum are added.
The seventh place went to the Hungarian Wizz Air, with 1.2 million passengers, a 2.88% share. Air Europa, with 886,610 passengers, and British Airways, with 557,700, were the other two airlines that exceeded half a million users.
All in all, the aeronautical group with the largest share was, by far, IAG, which includes Vueling, Iberia, British Airways and Level: together, these airlines transported 20.07 million passengers, 48.48% of the total of 41 63 million that passed through El Prat in 2022.
VUELING AND RYANAIR GAIN SHARE COMPARED TO 2019
The comparison with 2019 shows that Vueling gained as a percentage of the total (38.68% that year, the last before the pandemic, compared to the current 41.7%), although the passengers transported were less in 2022 than in that year (17.39 million vs. 20.38 million).
In percentage terms, the decrease in passengers for Vueling in El Prat in relation to 2019 was 14.67%, a lower decrease than that registered by the infrastructure as a whole, which in 2022 saw 52.68 million people pass, a 21 %less.
Ryanair also gained presence as a percentage of the total, which in 2019 disturbed 14.85% of Prat passengers, compared to 17.84% in 2022. In absolute numbers, this Irish airline remained 5.24% per below the data from before the pandemic.
The British group Easyjet, on the contrary, was the third year that transported the most passengers: 3.33 million users, so that it increased a decrease of 36.6% compared to that year. Its share was 6.32% in 2019, compared to 5.07% in 2022.
Lufthansa, which in 2022 ousted easyJet from third position, limited its decline in percentage terms to 15.28%, since it moved the last year before covid-19 to 3.01 million passengers. Some data that imply that this group has gone from a share of 5.7% in 2019 to 6.13% last year.
SEVENTH EUROPEAN AIRPORT
The Air Traffic Observatory of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce has highlighted this week how, in light of the 2022 data, Barcelona was the seventh European airport in total passenger traffic, just behind Madrid.
In 2022 El Prat operated 43 intercontinental connections, 11% less than in 2019, when there were 47 connections of this type. Although flights to the United States have recovered strongly, others to China (Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong) continues to be resumed, as well as the pending connection with Lima (Peru).
Likewise, the sources of the Barcelona Air Route Development Committee (CDRA) consulted by EFE have pointed to India and Japan as two of the destinations that it aims to offer as a priority from the Catalan capital.
The analysis of the Chamber also indicates that the offer of total places for this winter season will exceed 10 million, that is, just 2% below the same period of 2019.
