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Published: 10 March 2022

Number of passengers passing through Finnish airports started to grow in the latter half of 2021

In 2021, altogether 5.4 million passengers flew through Finnish airports, which was 84 per cent of the number of passengers in 2020. The number of passengers in international air transport decreased by 17 per cent and that in domestic air transport by 11 per cent. In all, 4.3 million passengers flew through Helsinki Airport and a total of 1.1 million passengers through other domestic airports. Helsinki Airport accounted for 79 per cent of all passengers at domestic airports.

Passengers of international and domestic flights in 2019 to 2021

In 2021, the number of passengers in January to March was only 10 per cent from the year before, but in April to December the number had already tripled compared to the corresponding period in 2020. After the quiet early part of the year, passenger numbers in air transport started to grow steadily in the latter half of 2021. Altogether 80 per cent of the total number of passengers in 2021 were flown in the July to December period.

Compared to the year before, the number of air passengers grew in 2021 only at the airports of Kemi-Tornio, Kuusamo and Kajaani. The number of passengers at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport fell by 16 per cent, while the number of passengers at the airports of Turku, Jyväskylä, Joensuu, Vaasa, Tampere-Pirkkala and Enontekiö fell by over 50 per cent.

Although the number of air passengers began to rise during 2021, it is still a long way from the situation prior to the coronavirus pandemic. The number of passengers in 2021 was only around one fifth of the level in 2019.

Measured by the number of passengers, 68 per cent of air passages in 2021 were international flights and 32 per cent domestic flights. Eighty per cent of the passengers at Helsinki Airport were passengers on international flights. The share of passengers in international transport was over 90 per cent at the airports of Turku, Lappeenranta and Tampere-Pirkkala. Ninety-seven per cent of the passengers at Helsinki Airport flew on scheduled flights and three per cent on chartered flights. At the other domestic airports, 15 per cent of the passengers flew on chartered flights.

The volume of freight and mail transport by air grew by one fifth compared to 2020. Freight and mail transports amounted to 179,347 tonnes in total, and 98 per cent of the tonnes were transported through Helsinki Airport. Ninety-nine per cent of the freight tonnes were transported between Finland and foreign countries. Altogether 93,800 tonnes of the transported volume of goods were outgoing and 85,548 tonnes were incoming freight.

Source: Transport and tourism, Statistics Finland

Inquiries: Jukka Tuominen 029 551 3635, jukka.tuominen@stat.fi

Head of Department in charge: Hannele Orjala

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Updated 10.3.2022