Marked by the symbolic milestone of 5 million passengers, which was reached for the first time in early December, Bordeaux has risen to top position in terms of growth among major regional French airports: + 7.6%
International flights were the driving force behind this record growth, with the opening of new routes this year, in keeping with the strong developments that have taken place since 2009.
Along with direct routes, major international hubs represented over one million passengers.
It was a record year for Bordeaux Airport, the international airport of our beautiful new Grande Région.
2015, a year ….
… of records
Milestone of 5 million passengers reached on 8 December 2015
Record for annual traffic: 5,300,000 passengers
Record for daily traffic: 22,343 passengers on 10 July
Number of international routes opened: 8 between March and August 2015
Since 2009, Bordeaux Airport’s international traffic has doubled. 4 destinations have clearly risen to the top terms of the number of passengers:
– London (British Airways, EasyJet et Ryanair) which serve 3 airports (Gatwick, Stansted and Luton), with 410,544 passengers, for growth of +6% compared to 2014
– Amsterdam (KLM, EasyJet) with nearly 294,600 passengers, for +24%
– Lisbon (TAP Portugal) with 123,269 passengers and +18.4%
– Geneva (EasyJet) with 194,650 passengers, an increase of +5.2%
– Basel (EasyJet) with 116,500 passengers and a growth of +5.1%.
Domestic traffic showed growth of +2.3%, growth that has slowed since the events in Paris in mid-November. A notable highlight is the good results in service towards Paris, particularly the Charles de Gaulle hub with growth of +8.2%, or 632,000 passengers.
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Low-cost airlines generated growth of 65% in 2015 with 375,000 more passengers than in 2014. Three operators contributed greatly to this strong growth: EasyJet (12% with 162,204 more passengers than in 2014), Volotea (23% with 65,052 more passengers than in 2014) and Vueling (12% with 31,973 more passengers). Network companies accounted for 81,172 more passengers than in 2014. Air France/KLM (56%, with 82,113 more passengers than in 2014), Turkish Airlines (25% with 36,997 passengers) and Aegean Airlines (13% with 18,547 passengers) contributed to this growth.
Along with traffic, aircraft movements increased more moderately: +4.5%.
Freight increased
… boosting and extending the network
A total of three new airline companies – Brussels Airlines (Brussels), IGavion (Dole), and ASL Airlines (formerly Europe Airpost)- made their entrance at Bordeaux Airport. 12 new routes were new launched between March and August 2015, 6 of which are low-cost: Brest, Prague, Dubrovnik, Corfou (Volotea), Malaga (Vueling), Glasgow (EasyJet), Vienna (ASL Airlines formerly Europe Airpost), Brussels (Brussels Airlines), Athens (Aegean Airlines), Metz-Nancy (Twinjet), Dole (IGavion), and Milan Linate (Alitalia, established especially for the world’s fair). The Toulon route with Volotea returned to service for the summer season.
… to better meet travellers’ expectations
With the priority of improving the quality of our services for passengers as well as for airline companies, Bordeaux Airport opened the extension of the Billi terminal in June. The objective of this extension was to create a more spacious departure area and improve the passenger experience with a redesigned shopping area (opening of a new bar/restaurant concept, Deli&cia, and the Relay shop). Furthermore, the capabilities and features of the terminal were optimized in order to better meet the needs of airline companies.
Inspired by this same desire to improve the quality of the welcome provided to passengers, the new Air France lounge opened, featuring the company’s standards of comfort, a quality design and modern decoration.
The lounge, which caters to flights to the Charles de Gaulle hub, offers a relaxation area, a work area, and spacious and convivial table d’hôte, with redesigned catering offerings, including Bordeaux wine tastings. WIFI access, a large selection of local and national newspapers, and a personalised welcome from an Air France agent are offered to members of the airline’s loyalty programme.
Furthermore, the recent contract established with the operator SSP enabled the opening of 6 new retail outlets: Le Barista, Le Café des Grands Hommes, Brioche Doré, 2 Starbucks (in Hall A and in the courtyard of the Billi terminal), and the restaurant Le Grand Comptoir. Relay now offers souvenirs and decoration items from the famous brand “La chaise longue”.
In June the company Blue Valet opened at the airport, offering valet parking services and the possibility of maintenance services for the vehicle (interior and exterior cleaning, and a security check-up). In July a new car rental company arrived, “GoldCar”, enlarging the offering of the platform which was already home to 9 operators.
… interaction with our passengers and “e-travellers”
bordeaux.aeroport.fr saw an increase in the number of people consulting the website: 2,700,000 visits for an increase of +19% and 1,500,000 unique visitors, for an increase of +18.5%, which confirmed the interest that is shown for our portfolio of destinations. In order to facilitate the experience of “e-travellers”, several upgrades were made, including a more user-friendly homepage and travel inspirations with the new slideshow of destination pictures on the homepage.
To provide travel inspiration, the Bordeaux Airport’s Facebook page, contributed to and shared by 23,000 fans, proposes various themes: travel ideas, news from the destinations, good deals and featured favourite destinations.
2016, new perspectives
The development of the airport will continue in this new year, bringing with it new challenges and new perspectives as it strengthens its position as an international airport in the new Grande Région. This will begin with the launch of 10 new routes set to provide services at the beginning of 2016: Berlin, Barcelona, Marseille, and Venice with EasyJet, Alicante, Split, Faro, with Volotea, Madrid with Iberia Express, Hamburg with ASL Airlines, and Montpellier with Chalair Aviation.
A new airline lounge in Hall A
The new airline lounge in Hall A, featuring a surface area of 230 m² and 110 seats, will open its doors in the spring of 2016. The objective of this initiative is to create an area for work and relaxation for high-end customers of the airlines that operate in Hall A. The lounge will be managed by an operator that will be designated in the month of January. Passengers will benefit from a personalized welcome, catering facilities, a reading and relaxation area with a TV area, and a work space. This lounge will be located on level 2 of Hall A with stunning views of the runways.
Land development
The SA ADBM company, seeking to enhance the value of nearly 6 hectares located at the entrance to the airport zone, referred to as the 45th Parallel, initiated the first step of the project of this tertiary property centre. As a reminder, this project is aimed at developing a major complex featuring a hotel area (10,310 m²), which would host a conference centre, a luxury hotel with 154 rooms, a group of office buildings, an inter-company restaurant, and a silo park featuring green space. For the time being, the public inquiry began on 15 December, and will be followed by the filing of the building permit at the beginning of 2016.
Property development
Bordeaux Airport has 43 hectares available that can be used immediately, and it will reinforce its objective of developing the property and establishing companies in the Northern zone. In 2016, Dassault Falcon Services will open new maintenance installations (an area of 7,200m²) in order to strengthen its maintenance capacities for the Falcon aircrafts. The building will be located on the plot adjacent to Sabena Technics, from whom the Dassault Aviation Group purchased the land and signed an industrial partnership. The first stone was laid on 16 October 2015.
And, coming soon… a project the airport will commit to for the coming decade
Furthermore, Bordeaux Airport has studied the possibility of creating a new shopping centre and waiting area with an area of 5000m², for both Halls A and B, on the runway side, and a new shared Border Inspection Post (BIP) area, which would allow the following:
– improved experience for passengers by facilitating their understanding and shortening wait times
– improved service quality for customers in the waiting area, by offering them a new shopping space
This large-scale project is based on the significant growth of the network airlines in Bordeaux.
A feasibility study is underway for this major project, which will be submitted to the approval of shareholders in March 2016.
Improving the air service
In the summer of 2015, development work on the two main traffic circles located at Avenue René Cassin and Avenue de l’Argonne was carried out in order to facilitate access to the airport. But other major improvements are expected in the future, including a highway structure project, which would allow direct and fast access to the airport area. Two public transport projects will be highlighted in 2016: the bus featuring a high level of service will be the new Pessac Bersol – Le Haillan line, which is expected to begin service in 2017, and the extension of the Tram A line to the airport, which should open in 2019. These projects will enter the 3rd consultation phase in the beginning of 2016.
Finally, this year will also see the launch of the Opération d’Intérêt Métropolitain Bordeaux Aéroport. As a reminder, this operation is a development project for 400 hectares, which extends to the north to the La Jalle natural areas, to the east to the ring road, to the west to the Mérignac municipal boundary, and to the south to avenue François Mitterand. The OIM Strategic Committee, of which Bordeaux Airport should be a part of, will define a development strategy that will span a period of 15 to 20 years for companies, urban development, transit and infrastructures, particularly roadways.
08/01/2016
