Vienna Airport handled 3.17 million passengers in August 2026, a 6.9% decline compared with the same month last year, as reduced low-cost carrier capacity and continued disruption linked to the Middle East affected traffic.
Across the wider Flughafen Wien Group, which includes Vienna Airport, Malta International Airport and Košice Airport, passenger traffic reached 4.53 million, down a more moderate 1.7% year on year.
Strong growth at Malta and Košice partly offset the decline in Vienna. Malta Airport handled 1.20 million passengers, up 12.3%, while traffic at Košice increased 18.8% to just over 150,000 passengers.
Vienna Airport handles 3.17 million passengers
Vienna Airport recorded 3,172,284 passengers during August, compared with approximately 3.4 million during the same month in 2025.
Local passenger traffic declined 7.1% to 2.44 million, while transfer traffic fell 3.8% to 726,134 passengers.
Aircraft movements were also lower, with 21,839 take-offs and landings, representing a 6% year-on-year decline.
Despite fewer passengers and flights, aircraft remained relatively full. Vienna Airport reported a seat load factor of 85.6%, just 0.8 percentage points below August 2025.
Cargo moved in the opposite direction, increasing 8.3% to 27,513 tonnes during the month.
Eastern Europe and Middle East traffic records sharpest declines
Passenger numbers varied significantly by region.
Western European traffic from Vienna declined 3.2% to approximately 1.11 million passengers, while Eastern European traffic fell substantially more, dropping 19.2% to 231,813 passengers.
Middle East traffic decreased 12.9% to 75,222 passengers.
North American traffic was down 2.8% at 55,966 passengers.
Other regions recorded growth. Passenger numbers to Africa increased 4.3% to 31,468, while Far East traffic climbed 8.3% to 66,394 passengers.
Malta Airport grows 12.3% and Košice 18.8%
The performance of Flughafen Wien Group’s other airports contrasted sharply with Vienna.
Malta International Airport handled 1,204,465 passengers in August, an increase of 12.3% compared with last year. Aircraft movements rose by a similar 12.4% to 7,213.
Košice Airport recorded even faster passenger growth, handling 150,216 travellers, up 18.8% year on year.
For the first eight months of 2026, Košice passenger traffic is running 32% above 2025 levels, reaching 765,435 passengers.
Malta has handled 7.64 million passengers since January, representing growth of 14.9%.
Vienna summer traffic reaches 6.3 million passengers
Despite the year-on-year decline, Vienna Airport experienced another busy peak travel season.
A total of 6.3 million passengers travelled through Vienna during July and August, down 5.8% compared with the same two months in 2025.
The airport recorded 35 days during the summer period with more than 100,000 passengers.
The busiest day was August 1, when 110,414 travellers passed through Vienna Airport.
Across the entire Flughafen Wien Group, July and August passenger traffic reached almost 9 million.
Group passenger traffic remains up for 2026
For the January-August period, Vienna Airport handled 20.57 million passengers, down 4% year on year.
The broader group, however, remains in positive territory due to the performance of Malta and Košice.
Combined passenger traffic across the three airports reached 28.97 million during the first eight months of 2026, an increase of 1.1%.
Group-wide cargo volumes also increased 0.7% to 226,284 tonnes, while Vienna’s cargo operation performed slightly better, rising 1.1% to 209,803 tonnes during the first eight months of the year.
The August figures highlight an increasingly divergent performance within the Flughafen Wien portfolio, with passenger volumes declining at its largest airport while Malta and Košice continue to record double-digit growth.
