Frankfurt Airport`s passenger business was affected by capacity constraints at the FRA international air transportation hub. For the first time since 2002 Frankfurt Airport did not register any…
Frankfurt Airport`s passenger business was affected by capacity constraints at the FRA international air transportation hub. For the first time since 2002 Frankfurt Airport did not register any passenger growth in the August reporting month. FRA welcomed some 5,030,098 passengers in August 2006, a 0.4 percent drop on the same period last year.
Aircraft movements also declined from the previous year’s level by 400 to 42,785 takeoffs and landings.
“We can no longer meet the major airlines’ requests for attractive landing and departure slots and increasingly have to decline their requests,” explained Fraport AG’s executive board chairman Dr. Wilhelm Bender. “This was also a reason why FRA could garner only a limited share of the 4.5 percent annual growth in global air traffic in the past.”
“Our traffic growth now occurs elsewhere,” said Bender, referring to the high growth rates at some other major airports in Germany and Europe. Frankfurt will continue to incur stagnation until the urgently needed capacity expansion is implemented. At hub airports like Frankfurt, many international airlines require not only a few but a large number of takeoff and landing slots that dovetail with their individual route networks. Therefore, the capacities apparently freed up by the slight decrease in aircraft movements at FRA do not offer relief.
“Because of its excellent geographic location and infrastructure Frankfurt has the optimal prerequisites for maintaining its position as one of the leading global air transportation hubs in the future,” stressed Bender. “However, we urgently need to implement Frankfurt Airport’s planned expansion program to remain competitive in the future and to gain the airline alliances’ long-term commitment to the FRA air transportation hub.”
Bender is confident that Frankfurt Airport’s capacity expansion will be realized within the announced time frame and that the new northwest runway will go into operation in 2010. “We will adhere to our planning schedule and expect to receive the zoning decision by the end of 2007, as indicated by the Hesse state government,” said Bender. Fraport is working full steam at implementing the company’s biggest project for the future on schedule.
The Fraport Group’s six airports served about 7.6 million passengers in August 2006, achieving a 4.8 percent jump in passenger traffic. Over-proportionate rates of increase at Antalya (AYT), up 44.8 percent, and Frankfurt-Hahn (HHN), up 22.2 percent, were the major growth factors. Fraport’s international terminal at AYT now handles 44 percent of the total passenger volume at this Turkish airport. Lima Airport (LIM) in Peru, South America, also developed positively. LIM welcomed 3.2 percent more passengers. Passenger traffic at Hanover Airport (HAJ) remained unchanged compared to August 2005, while passenger figures for Saarbrucken Airport (SCN) dropped by nearly 22 percent.
Even though FRA’s accumulated passenger numbers for 2006 will presumably grow by only about one percent over 2005, Fraport maintains its forecast of more than two percent revenue growth for the current business year. Fraport’s EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) is expected to grow by four or five percent, and profit for the year at even a double-digit rate.
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