Future of Dresden Airport: Decision is approaching - react now!

Future of Dresden Airport: Decision is approaching - react now!

More and more travelers are using the large airports Saxony-Anhalt, while Dresden Airport is under pressure. Leipzig/Halle Airport does a good business with an increase in operations of 4.7% in 2024, while Dresden has to deal with a decline of 5.1%. This development has rejected the discussion about the future of the Dresden Airport, such as the Süddeutsche reported.

Sachsen-Anhalt plans to no longer provide financial grants for Dresden Airport, which also contains the tense financial situation of Mitteldeutsche Flughafen AG (MFAG). However, the Free State of Saxony has made a constructive offer of conversation and provides around 100 million euros for the years 2024 to 2026 to support the infrastructure. However, Thomas Löser, Member of the Landtag, is criticizing and demanding sustainable concepts and alternative uses.

the loss of connections

One of the biggest challenges for Dresden Airport is the loss of international flight connections. In October 2023, Ryanair hired the flights to London, and since March there has only been a direct connection to Zurich. The result of this development is not only falling passenger numbers, but also an ever increasing gap between the airports. Holidaymakers from East Germany prefer greater airports such as Leipzig, Frankfurt or Munich as far as the efforts for sustainable economy are concerned.

The passenger numbers of the Dresden airport testify to this tendency: In 2022, the airport was only able to record 929,928 passengers, which corresponds to an increase of 11% compared to 2021, but remained far behind the average of the 28 airports in the ADV association. The airport feels increasingly determined because skills are shifted to Leipzig.

Financial misery and personnel reduction

Overall, the MFAG financial gap amounts to an incredible 145 million euros, which further increases the uncertainty about the future of Dresden Airport. The airport workers already have to prepare for difficult times: 124 jobs should be eliminated, which corresponds to almost 10% of the workforce. A strike against the restructuring program recently caused a sensation because the employees are faced with longer working hours and lower wages.

particularly worrying is the fact that despite this financial misery, bonuses are paid for the board members, while at the same time decision -making processes are on the brink. The IHK President Andreas Sperl is increasingly worried about connecting the important microelectronics industry in Saxony and criticizes the cancellations of airlines, although funds are provided for semiconductor works.

outlook and new plans

MFAG still sees development potential for Dresden, since infrastructure projects and settlements can be worked on. In this context, the idea of ​​a multifunctional arena with 7,000 seats was introduced in the terminal to open up new sources of income. In addition, Swiss Airlines plans up to seven flights to Zurich in the 2024 summer flight schedule.

Overall, air traffic in Germany faces profound changes. This shows, for example, a graphically strong decline in foreign visitors, which, according to the current surveys of the ADV airport association, has dropped to historical lows. This also affects the flight connections and passenger numbers of all airports, such as Aero International

whether the Dresden Airport can still tear around the rudder with new concepts, positive developments and falling operating costs. However, one thing is clear: there is a lot to be done, and the coming years will be a major challenge for those responsible.