Even five years after the start of the pandemic, passenger numbers at airports in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) have not yet reached 2019 levels. In 2024, around 18,6 million passengers will depart from the state's six main airports, which represents an increase of one million compared to 2023, but is still 3,1 million fewer than in the pre-Corona year of 2019.
The large airports of Düsseldorf and Cologne/Bonn in particular recorded declines in 2024 compared to 2019. A key factor in this is the greatly reduced range of domestic air traffic. In contrast, the country's smaller airports recorded increases. Weeze Airport on the Lower Rhine stood out with an increase of 60 percent compared to 2019 and served around 2024 million passengers in 1,97. The airports of Münster/Osnabrück, Paderborn/Lippstadt and Dortmund also reported higher passenger numbers than before the pandemic.
The positive development at the smaller airports is attributed to the expansion of destinations and the expansion of cooperation with airlines and tour operators. Weeze Airport expects a further increase in passenger numbers to over two million in 2025 and plans to offer 45 destinations. In the summer flight schedule, Palma de Mallorca will be served with up to 16 weekly departures. The number of flight movements in Weeze rose to around 2024 takeoffs and landings in 24.000, an increase of 26 percent compared to the previous year.
Overall, it is clear that while the large airports in NRW are still struggling with the aftermath of the pandemic, particularly due to the reduced domestic flight offerings, the smaller airports are benefiting from increased demand and expanded offerings.
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