Bratislava Airport Handles 1,948,008 Passengers in 2024
M. R. Štefánik Airport processed a total of 1,948,008 passengers on arrivals and departures in 2024, a 7% increase compared to the previous year. The most popular destinations from Bratislava last year were Antalya in Turkey, London, and Milan-Bergamo, with high volumes of passengers traveling to and from these cities. The total number of flights also rose by 6% year-on-year, with 28,098 takeoffs and landings recorded at the airport.
"Last year’s growth in passenger numbers was driven by a successful summer holiday season, direct flights from Bratislava to exotic destinations on wide-body aircraft, and the addition of a new airline. Pegasus Airlines began operating regular flights from Bratislava to Istanbul and Antalya," explained Dušan Novota, CEO and Chairman of the Board of M. R. Štefánik Airport. "With 1.948 million passengers handled, we achieved the fifth-highest annual passenger total in the airport’s history, serving 134,348 more passengers than the previous year," he added. In 2023, the airport handled 1,813,660 passengers.
TOP FLIGHT ROUTES
Among the busiest routes at Bratislava Airport, Antalya in Turkey and London topped the list in terms of passenger numbers. Both destinations saw over 200,000 passengers traveling to and from them. These were followed by routes to Milan, Hurghada, and Skopje. During the summer season, passengers had access to 39 scheduled routes and 40 charter flights. In the winter of 2024/2025, the airport offered 19 scheduled routes and 12 charter flights to exotic destinations.
TOP CHARTER FLIGHTS
Clients of travel agencies most frequently chose charter flights from Bratislava to Antalya, Hurghada, Larnaca in Cyprus, Monastir in Tunisia, and Salalah in Oman.
TOP SCHEDULED FLIGHTS
The most popular scheduled routes, available for individual ticket purchases, included flights to and from London, Milan-Bergamo, Skopje, Dublin, and Malta.
TOP MONTH AND DAY
July 2024 was the busiest month of the year, with 327,686 passengers passing through the airport on arrivals and departures. The peak day of the year was July 28, when airport staff handled 12,602 passengers. A historical record was also set in June, with 246,003 passengers—the highest June total in the airport’s 73-year history.
TOP AIRLINE
Ryanair remained the largest airline at Bratislava Airport in terms of passenger numbers in 2024. It was followed by Smartwings, Wizz Air, charter airline Air Horizont, and Pegasus Airlines, which quickly became one of the top five airlines at the airport.
NEW AIRLINE AND ROUTES
In 2024, Bratislava Airport established a partnership with Turkish carrier Pegasus Airlines, which began year-round flights to Istanbul in May, offering connections to other regions of Turkey, the Middle East, and Asia, along with seasonal flights to Antalya. Norwegian Airlines also signed a deal to launch new regular flights from Bratislava to Copenhagen starting in late June 2025.
NEW EXOTIC ROUTES WITH WIDE-BODY AIRCRAFT
For the first time in its history, the airport operated flights to 12 exotic destinations during the 2024 winter schedule. Passengers could enjoy direct flights from Bratislava to exotic locales on wide-body aircraft, including business-class-equipped Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners (355 seats) and Airbus A330 aircraft (285 seats). Destinations included Phuket in Thailand, Mauritius, the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, Cuba, Qatar, Bahrain, Dubai, Salalah, and Muscat in Oman, Zanzibar, and Egypt.
FLIGHT OPERATIONS
In 2024, Bratislava Airport recorded 28,098 flights, encompassing regular, charter, private, training, state, rescue, and flight school operations. This represents a 6% increase from the 26,386 takeoffs and landings in 2023.
CARGO TRANSPORT
In terms of air cargo, 11,136 tons of cargo were handled in 2024, the same volume as the previous year. The largest carrier in this segment was DHL.