Brussels Airport (BRU) infrastructure: future

[Conti764]

The news is good that they have found a buyer for the shares, but be careful. Politics will be now more involved and we all know that what ever government is involved, it will be difficult to invest further.

The Flemish government has luck that the previous and current shareholders invested this 500 million for the future upgrade.

But what they will do with A Pier West and will they finally construct the long sound wall around the airport?

I have my doubts for the big investments for the coming years. And I'm talking about the new investments bcs they didn't saw anything about this.

Given the fact that the largest party of the Flemish government has many large political intrests in the region makes me believe that this wall might be one of the more likely investments...

A-pier West, I don't know... It depends on what the goal of the Flemish government is... Make the airport grow or just take a nice return from a profitable organization?

[lumumba]

The news is good that they have found a buyer for the shares, but be careful. Politics will be now more involved and we all know that what ever government is involved, it will be difficult to invest further.

The Flemish government has luck that the previous and current shareholders invested this 500 million for the future upgrade.

But what they will do with A Pier West and will they finally construct the long sound wall around the airport?

I have my doubts for the big investments for the coming years. And I'm talking about the new investments bcs they didn't saw anything about this.

Given the fact that the largest party of the Flemish government has many large political intrests in the region makes me believe that this wall might be one of the more likely investments...

A-pier West, I don't know... It depends on what the goal of the Flemish government is... Make the airport grow or just take a nice return from a profitable organization?

It seems obvious to me that...
The federal government and the Flemish region will invest as much as possible in employment.
Certainly much more than a private company that has to be accountable to its investors.

[Atlantis]

The news is good that they have found a buyer for the shares, but be careful. Politics will be now more involved and we all know that what ever government is involved, it will be difficult to invest further.

The Flemish government has luck that the previous and current shareholders invested this 500 million for the future upgrade.

But what they will do with A Pier West and will they finally construct the long sound wall around the airport?

I have my doubts for the big investments for the coming years. And I'm talking about the new investments bcs they didn't saw anything about this.

Given the fact that the largest party of the Flemish government has many large political intrests in the region makes me believe that this wall might be one of the more likely investments...

A-pier West, I don't know... It depends on what the goal of the Flemish government is... Make the airport grow or just take a nice return from a profitable organization?

It will be the last one. The Flemish government is hunting for the nice dividend. In their announcement is nothing about investments or growth. Even nothing about the flight law, to solve the issues with the routes. Nothing.

It will be still an empty box

[lumumba]

The news is good that they have found a buyer for the shares, but be careful. Politics will be now more involved and we all know that what ever government is involved, it will be difficult to invest further.

The Flemish government has luck that the previous and current shareholders invested this 500 million for the future upgrade.

But what they will do with A Pier West and will they finally construct the long sound wall around the airport?

I have my doubts for the big investments for the coming years. And I'm talking about the new investments bcs they didn't saw anything about this.

Given the fact that the largest party of the Flemish government has many large political intrests in the region makes me believe that this wall might be one of the more likely investments...

A-pier West, I don't know... It depends on what the goal of the Flemish government is... Make the airport grow or just take a nice return from a profitable organization?

It will be the last one. The Flemish government is hunting for the nice dividend. In their announcement is nothing about investments or growth. Even nothing about the flight law, to solve the issues with the routes. Nothing.

It will be still an empty box

Let's see anyway.

[Atlantis]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

[fcw]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

[JOVAN2]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

BRU has been a sleeping beauty for too long.
The present management did OK but could have done lots better.
The ambition should be to grow at least a million a year, like eg CRL.

BRU is still about the only airport in in league that still has not beaten in its pre-covid numbers.

Hope the new shareholders can give mahagement a good kick.
BRU is a potential gold mine, like Antwerp-Bruges harbour.

[Atlantis]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

There were potential investors. The biggest, besides smaller ones, was Macquarie. But for them the price was way too high

[Atlantis]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

BRU has been a sleeping beauty for too long.
The present management did OK but could have done lots better.
The ambition should be to grow at least a million a year, like eg CRL.

BRU is still about the only airport in in league that still has not beaten in its pre-covid numbers.

Hope the new shareholders can give mahagement a good kick.
BRU is a potential gold mine, like Antwerp-Bruges harbour.

About a million pax per year is the case. I don't know why this is a doubt or why to bring it up.
Before covid there were many years with 1,5 million pax more then the previous year. Also after covid there are years with more than 1 million per year.

[fcw]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

There were potential investors. The biggest, besides smaller ones, was Macquarie. But for them the price was way too high

Too high, as in not a good investment at that price.
So blaming the Flemish government for being after a quick profit is a bit short-sighted.

[lumumba]

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

There were potential investors. The biggest, besides smaller ones, was Macquarie. But for them the price was way too high

Too high, as in not a good investment at that price.
So blaming the Flemish government for being after a quick profit is a bit short-sighted.

[rwandan-flyer]

The latest news is that in the "nota" file of the Flemish government is written that in some time a part of what they invested will be sold again.

I knew it that it is pure to earn money on it, nothing more, nothing less.

They are purely playing with the airport as a cash machine. A real shame.

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

BRU has been a sleeping beauty for too long.
The present management did OK but could have done lots better.
The ambition should be to grow at least a million a year, like eg CRL.

BRU is still about the only airport in in league that still has not beaten in its pre-covid numbers.

Hope the new shareholders can give mahagement a good kick.
BRU is a potential gold mine, like Antwerp-Bruges harbour.

Ok let's talk about facts. If you talk about Brussels league, i don't put Heathrow, Rome, Madrid, Paris CDG, Amsterdam, Munich, Barcelona and Frankfurt in the list. I will put Lisbon, Copenhagen, Oslo, Athens, Vienna, Dublin, Zurich, and Stockholm

And you should also look the context. Per example at Zurich they got some new airlines which also serve...Brussels : Royal Jordanian, Ethiopian Airlines. Plus they have a biggest demand to South and North America than Brussels. Edelweiss has started to serve Colombia and Swiss to Washington DC which is served from....Brussels by both Brussels Airlines and United. Also some new routes to Asia with Swiss to Seoul. To name some new routes (a big part of their new destinations is in Europe).

Athens, Lisbon and Dublin have a traffic well above pre covid.

Greece was one of few countries which the less restrictions for covid between 2020-2022. Then Athens has huge demand with the North America than Brussels. North America Europe traffic is above pre covid traffic when you see data. It's not a surprise to see the airport where demand was high before the covid to see many routes to open (Paris, London, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Athens, Rome, Dublin). We can draw the same conclusions for Lisbon.

Dublin has lost some airlines during the covid : Cathay and Ethiopian (strange 2 airlines at BRU in 2025 but not longer at DUB ), but they got JetBlue or Egytpair and Aer Lingus has expanded in North America. But again the point to point demand between Dublin and North America (huge diaspora from both sides and many tourist from both sides) is higher than Brussels and North America.

About Athens and Lisbon, they have a strong domestic network which helps.

Brussels Airport (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brussels_Airport)

2019 : 26,360,003 pax
2024: 23,610,856 pax

1st it took time to Brussels to see some long haul airlines to resume routes: ANA, Cathay and Thai. Singapore Airlines had postponed its return to BRU. Delta has just resumed its Atlanta service. Again in Europe, Brussels is not in the top 10 of largest point to point market with the rest of the world.

If you look the list of airport that i did, outside Stockholm all airports were ahead Brussels before the covid. So BRU is not always on the top of the list on some airlines when they want to resume services. Only Africa provides good point to point demand. Then BRU was hit by several strikes and the demise of Air Belgium.

Zurich (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zurich_Airport):

2019: 31,507,692 pax
2024 : 31,204,287 pax

Copenhagen (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Airport)

2019: 30,256,703 pax
2024 : 29,882,553 pax

Vienna (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_In ... al_Airport)

2019 : 31,662,189 pax,
2024 : 31,719,836 pax

Stockholm Arlanda ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Arlanda_Airport) :

2019 : 25,642,62,
2024 : 22,737,974 pax

Oslo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Airport,_Gardermoen):

2019 : 28,592,619 pax
2024 : 26,440,015 pax

Athens (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athens_In ... al_Airport) :

2019: 25,573,993 pax
2024: 31,854,761 pax

Lisbon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisbon_Airport)

2019 : 31,184,594 pax
2024 : 35,093,000 pax

Dublin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin_Airport)

2019 : 32,907,673 pax
2024 : 34,623,260 pax

[JOVAN2]

Or the opposite: nobody wanted to invest and the Flemish government came, temporary, to the rescue!
If BRU would be that attractive to invest in, potential investors would be running over each other in order to buy.

BRU has been a sleeping beauty for too long.
The present management did OK but could have done lots better.
The ambition should be to grow at least a million a year, like eg CRL.

BRU is still about the only airport in in league that still has not beaten in its pre-covid numbers.

Hope the new shareholders can give mahagement a good kick.
BRU is a potential gold mine, like Antwerp-Bruges harbour.

Ok let's talk about facts. If you talk about Brussels league, i don't put Heathrow, Rome, Madrid, Paris CDG, Amsterdam, Munich, Barcelona and Frankfurt in the list. I will put Lisbon, Copenhagen, Oslo, Athens, Vienna, Dublin, Zurich, and Stockholm

And you should also look the context. Per example at Zurich they got some new airlines which also serve...Brussels : Royal Jordanian, Ethiopian Airlines. Plus they have a biggest demand to South and North America than Brussels. Edelweiss has started to serve Colombia and Swiss to Washington DC which is served from....Brussels by both Brussels Airlines and United. Also some new routes to Asia with Swiss to Seoul. To name some new routes (a big part of their new destinations is in Europe).

Athens, Lisbon and Dublin have a traffic well above pre covid.

Greece was one of few countries which the less restrictions for covid between 2020-2022. Then Athens has huge demand with the North America than Brussels. North America Europe traffic is above pre covid traffic when you see data. It's not a surprise to see the airport where demand was high before the covid to see many routes to open (Paris, London, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Athens, Rome, Dublin). We can draw the same conclusions for Lisbon.

Dublin has lost some airlines during the covid : Cathay and Ethiopian (strange 2 airlines at BRU in 2025 but not longer at DUB ), but they got JetBlue or Egytpair and Aer Lingus has expanded in North America. But again the point to point demand between Dublin and North America (huge diaspora from both sides and many tourist from both sides) is higher than Brussels and North America.

About Athens and Lisbon, they have a strong domestic network which helps.

Brussels Airport (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brussels_Airport)

2019 : 26,360,003 pax
2024: 23,610,856 pax

1st it took time to Brussels to see some long haul airlines to resume routes: ANA, Cathay and Thai. Singapore Airlines had postponed its return to BRU. Delta has just resumed its Atlanta service. Again in Europe, Brussels is not in the top 10 of largest point to point market with the rest of the world.

If you look the list of airport that i did, outside Stockholm all airports were ahead Brussels before the covid. So BRU is not always on the top of the list on some airlines when they want to resume services. Only Africa provides good point to point demand. Then BRU was hit by several strikes and the demise of Air Belgium.

Zurich (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zurich_Airport):

2019: 31,507,692 pax
2024 : 31,204,287 pax

Copenhagen (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Airport)

2019: 30,256,703 pax
2024 : 29,882,553 pax

Vienna (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_In ... al_Airport)

2019 : 31,662,189 pax,
2024 : 31,719,836 pax

Stockholm Arlanda ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Arlanda_Airport) :

2019 : 25,642,62,
2024 : 22,737,974 pax

Oslo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Airport,_Gardermoen):

2019 : 28,592,619 pax
2024 : 26,440,015 pax

Athens (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athens_In ... al_Airport) :

2019: 25,573,993 pax
2024: 31,854,761 pax

Lisbon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisbon_Airport)

2019 : 31,184,594 pax
2024 : 35,093,000 pax

Dublin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin_Airport)

2019 : 32,907,673 pax
2024 : 34,623,260 pax

so, to make your long story short.
BRU is a weak student in ots category.

Weak management and very weak home carrier (thanks to CS...).
Lets hope CX, SQ, TG... will not run away with next geopolitical crisis.
Do not count on UA fot more US business.

Thanks for putting wiki figures in your message.

[Atlantis]

BRU has been a sleeping beauty for too long.
The present management did OK but could have done lots better.
The ambition should be to grow at least a million a year, like eg CRL.

BRU is still about the only airport in in league that still has not beaten in its pre-covid numbers.

Hope the new shareholders can give mahagement a good kick.
BRU is a potential gold mine, like Antwerp-Bruges harbour.

Ok let's talk about facts. If you talk about Brussels league, i don't put Heathrow, Rome, Madrid, Paris CDG, Amsterdam, Munich, Barcelona and Frankfurt in the list. I will put Lisbon, Copenhagen, Oslo, Athens, Vienna, Dublin, Zurich, and Stockholm

And you should also look the context. Per example at Zurich they got some new airlines which also serve...Brussels : Royal Jordanian, Ethiopian Airlines. Plus they have a biggest demand to South and North America than Brussels. Edelweiss has started to serve Colombia and Swiss to Washington DC which is served from....Brussels by both Brussels Airlines and United. Also some new routes to Asia with Swiss to Seoul. To name some new routes (a big part of their new destinations is in Europe).

Athens, Lisbon and Dublin have a traffic well above pre covid.

Greece was one of few countries which the less restrictions for covid between 2020-2022. Then Athens has huge demand with the North America than Brussels. North America Europe traffic is above pre covid traffic when you see data. It's not a surprise to see the airport where demand was high before the covid to see many routes to open (Paris, London, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Athens, Rome, Dublin). We can draw the same conclusions for Lisbon.

Dublin has lost some airlines during the covid : Cathay and Ethiopian (strange 2 airlines at BRU in 2025 but not longer at DUB ), but they got JetBlue or Egytpair and Aer Lingus has expanded in North America. But again the point to point demand between Dublin and North America (huge diaspora from both sides and many tourist from both sides) is higher than Brussels and North America.

About Athens and Lisbon, they have a strong domestic network which helps.

Brussels Airport (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brussels_Airport)

2019 : 26,360,003 pax
2024: 23,610,856 pax

1st it took time to Brussels to see some long haul airlines to resume routes: ANA, Cathay and Thai. Singapore Airlines had postponed its return to BRU. Delta has just resumed its Atlanta service. Again in Europe, Brussels is not in the top 10 of largest point to point market with the rest of the world.

If you look the list of airport that i did, outside Stockholm all airports were ahead Brussels before the covid. So BRU is not always on the top of the list on some airlines when they want to resume services. Only Africa provides good point to point demand. Then BRU was hit by several strikes and the demise of Air Belgium.

Zurich (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zurich_Airport):

2019: 31,507,692 pax
2024 : 31,204,287 pax

Copenhagen (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Airport)

2019: 30,256,703 pax
2024 : 29,882,553 pax

Vienna (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_In ... al_Airport)

2019 : 31,662,189 pax,
2024 : 31,719,836 pax

Stockholm Arlanda ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Arlanda_Airport) :

2019 : 25,642,62,
2024 : 22,737,974 pax

Oslo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Airport,_Gardermoen):

2019 : 28,592,619 pax
2024 : 26,440,015 pax

Athens (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athens_In ... al_Airport) :

2019: 25,573,993 pax
2024: 31,854,761 pax

Lisbon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisbon_Airport)

2019 : 31,184,594 pax
2024 : 35,093,000 pax

Dublin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dublin_Airport)

2019 : 32,907,673 pax
2024 : 34,623,260 pax

so, to make your long story short.
BRU is a weak student in ots category.

Weak management and very weak home carrier (thanks to CS...).
Lets hope CX, SQ, TG... will not run away with next geopolitical crisis.
Do not count on UA fot more US business.

Thanks for putting wiki figures in your message.

Your posts are full of contradiction. I your previous post you wrote that the current management did ok and in this post you wrote that it is a weak management???? Understand who can understand.

And why your conclusion that BRU is the weak student in comparison with those examples?

I think that the future plans are very clear, no? 32 million pax by 2030, 2031.
Why no extra business from UA? You know more then we? We know what extra business will come from UA. Just be patient.

[sn26567]

There were potential investors. The biggest, besides smaller ones, was Macquarie. But for them the price was way too high

The price was certainly too high, for everybody.

OTPP bought 39% of BAC capital in 2011 for 750 million euros. They sold it to the Flemish Government in 2025 for 2,770 million euros. OTPP thus made a profit of more than 2 billion euros in 14 years: it was a wonderful investment for them. However, it also reveals that the Flemish Government paid an excessive amount, particularly for a temporary investment. They might never be able to sell their investment at a profit.

[Atlantis]

There were potential investors. The biggest, besides smaller ones, was Macquarie. But for them the price was way too high

The price was certainly too high, for everybody.

OTPP bought 39% of BAC capital in 2011 for 750 million euros. They sold it to the Flemish Government in 2025 for 2,770 million euros. OTPP thus made a profit of more than 2 billion euros in 14 years: it was a wonderful investment for them. However, it also reveals that the Flemish Government paid an excessive amount, particularly for a temporary investment. They might never be able to sell their investment at a profit.

Exactly. They only think for the very near future, 2028 for a dividend. But dividends were not paid out for the last 6 years and this was on purpose. To give the airport the chance to have cash, to invest in the future, which we can see now with this 500 million for investments.

A lot of people, inside and outside, has a lot of questions. Even the employees are concerned about it. It was not expected.

Especially now when there is a file that in the near future a part will be sold already.

[JOVAN2]

@Atlantis.
BRU management did ok to keep the patient alive. Yes.

As for improving comfort and convenience for PAX , attracting more airlines, more destinations..
Growing in competitive world and create more jobs and opportunities..
They perform poorly.

[Atlantis]

@Atlantis.
BRU management did ok to keep the patient alive. Yes.

As for improving comfort and convenience for PAX , attracting more airlines, more destinations..
Growing in competitive world and create more jobs and opportunities..
They perform poorly.

The patient is not dead and will never be . Even when is was difficult, covid, they saw that via other ways they have income, cargo and real estate.

Regarding more destinations you seems to forget that you need a demand for that. It's not only the airport but also the airlines who decide in this. They always analyze and evaluate new destinations.
Agree to compete, but you seems to forget that labor costs in Belgium are one of the highest in Europe. To overcome this, you need to earn a lot on a new destination. So, they have a huge handicap to operate from Belgium and towards the competitors. Unless you will transfer your HQ to Dublin, Cyprus or Malta.

You can dream, but it's not always realistic

[Atlantis]

Building 31 will be also demolished. This is a huge technical building, engineering and maintenance building, on the opposite side of the state of art maintenance building of TUI

Building 31 which will be demolished will become a temporary Parking 31 for 355 vehicles and larger transportation.
This will be till on other places the constructions will be finished.
As from then, parking 31 will go in its next phase to become it's final destination

[rwandan-flyer]

@Atlantis.
BRU management did ok to keep the patient alive. Yes.

As for improving comfort and convenience for PAX , attracting more airlines, more destinations..
Growing in competitive world and create more jobs and opportunities..
They perform poorly.

The patient is not dead and will never be . Even when is was difficult, covid, they saw that via other ways they have income, cargo and real estate.

Regarding more destinations you seems to forget that you need a demand for that. It's not only the airport but also the airlines who decide in this. They always analyze and evaluate new destinations.
Agree to compete, but you seems to forget that labor costs in Belgium are one of the highest in Europe. To overcome this, you need to earn a lot on a new destination. So, they have a huge handicap to operate from Belgium and towards the competitors. Unless you will transfer your HQ to Dublin, Cyprus or Malta.

You can dream, but it's not always realistic

Yep and you have to add leisure markets (import & export) and vfr (visiting friends and relatives). About VFR i will focus on Belgians living aboard (including descendants). i won't compare with Italian, French, British, Spanish and German, it's another league.

If you compare to Irish (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_people), Dutch (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_people), Danish ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danes) or Portuguese (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portuguese_people), they have a bigger diaspora aboard. Mainly in North America, so it can justify the huge capacities from Lisbon, Amsterdam or Dublin to North America due to huge point to point demand and the hubs do the rest to fill the flights

Austrians (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austrians) and Swiss (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_people) are almost at the same level that Belgium. Swiss is behind Belgium.