TIRANA, April 5 – Passenger numbers at Albania’s sole international airport hit a historic high of nearly 2 million in 2015, up 10 percent compared to 2014, the airport concessionaire says.
The increase is also partly dedicated to a record number of 65,000 people who left Albania to seek asylum in EU countries, mainly to Germany, in 2015.
Passenger numbers at TIA slightly rose by 3 percent to 1.81 million in 2014, but were down by 0.4 percent or 6,770 passengers compared to the airport’s most successful performance in 2011 soon after the visa regime in Schengen area was lifted for Albanians in December 2010.
Some 14 airline companies operate in Tirana, all of which foreign-owned, linking Tirana to 22 foreign destinations through direct flights, mainly Italy.
Aircraft movement at TIA rose by 16 percent to 20,876 while cargo handled through the airport dropped by 4 percent to 2,229 metric tons.
The consortium employed some 271 people in 2015.
