Nearly 21 million air passengers in Q3 2023

Most air passengers are carried in the third quarter, with only the exception of COVID year 2020. This quarter includes school holidays and construction holidays. August is on average the month of the year with the highest number of air passengers.

This year, the busiest days of the year up to Q3 inclusive were Sunday 30 July and Monday 7 August, when a total of over 246 thousand passengers per day passed through the terminals of the five major airports. The quietest day in Q3 was Wednesday 5 July, with a total of over 165 thousand passengers.

Commercial air traffic up 8 percent

In Q3 2023, almost 143 thousand commercial flights carrying passengers, mail or goods were operated to and from the five major airports in the Netherlands. This is a year-on-year increase of over 8 percent. More than 86 percent of all flights passed through Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, and almost 86 percent of all air passengers travelling to and from the Netherlands passed through this airport.

In Q3 2023, this amounted to 17.8 million air passengers; almost 14 percent more than one year previously in Q3 2022. With more than 2 million, Eindhoven Airport accounted for almost 10 percent of all passengers. Eindhoven Airport and Rotterdam The Hague Airport handled slightly more passengers in Q3 than they did in the same quarter of 2019.

The remaining air passengers travelled via Rotterdam The Hague Airport, Maastricht Aachen Airport and Groningen Airport Eelde. In Q3 2023, The Hague and Maastricht Aachen airports handled fewer flights and passengers relative to the same period one year previously. Maastricht Aachen Airport struggled with its passenger traffic following the closure from 8 May to 30 June due to runway renovation, which caused airlines to shift some of their flights to other airports.

Passengers departing from Eindhoven, Rotterdam, Groningen and Maastricht mainly travelled within Europe

In Q3 2023, air passengers passing through Amsterdam Airport Schiphol travelled to and from all continents. Nearly 71 percent stayed in Europe, 16 percent flew to and from the Americas, and almost 9 percent to and from Asia. From Groningen Airport, only intra-European flights were operated.

From the other three airports, most intra-European flights were operated to holiday destinations in Greece, Spain, Portugal and Turkey, as well as some destinations in North Africa (Egypt and Morocco). This is similar to the pre-COVID year 2019. During the pandemic, flights were almost exclusively intra-European, except those to and from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

Less air cargo transport

Relative to Q3 2022, air cargo volumes decreased by almost 10 percent to nearly 348 thousand tonnes. Most cargo (over 98 percent) was transported via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol; nearly 341 thousand tonnes, which is almost 5 percent less than the same quarter one year previously. The remaining air cargo was handled through Maastricht Aachen Airport. At this airport, air cargo volumes decreased by almost 76 percent to nearly 7 thousand tonnes, relative to Q3 2022.