A total of 6.3 million passengers travelled through Latvia’s Riga Airport (RIX) in 2023, representing a 23 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
Regarding direct passenger traffic, Riga Airport reached 2019 levels, with some months surpassing pre-pandemic levels.
Furthermore, during the same year, 20 airlines operated at the airport, handling over 61,000 flights last year.
In 2023, Riga Airport was also the leading airport in the Baltic States, serving 42 per cent of the total Baltic air traffic passengers and 40 per cent of all flights.
Data disclosed by RIX show that the number of direct passengers increased by 23 per cent compared to 2022, exceeding the 5.2 million figure. RIX further noted that the transit of passengers has stabilised, and over 1.4 million, constituting 22 per cent of the total, used Riga Airport as a hub for connecting flights in 2023.
The increase in transfer and transit passenger traffic is attributed to the wide choice of destinations from Riga.
Laila Odiņa, Chairperson of the Board at Riga Airport, said that, in general, the European aviation industry has successfully returned to the COVID-19 pandemic levels.
The largest passenger traffic from Riga is to leisure destinations, and the demand is for short to medium-haul flights, including short holiday trips.
In addition to the rise in passenger traffic, Riga Airport experienced higher revenues last year.
Riga Airport’s unaudited statement for the first nine months of 2023 showed that RIX reached a net turnover of €54.5 million, a third higher than the same period the previous year, and the company’s profit reached €5.3 million.
During three quarters of 2023, RIX welcomed over five million travellers and handled 46,300 flights. Compared to the previous year, these figures also marked an increase of 28 per cent and 14 per cent, respectively.
Last month, Riga Airport of Latvia introduced a special passenger security checkpoint for families with children up to seven years. According to airport officials, this system aims to quicken the security check process for families with young children and to enhance the travel experience for this category in general.
In addition to families with children up to seven, authorities will grant such access to “Family of Honor” card holders.
This document is issued by Latvian authorities for families with many children or families with children with disabilities.
