Zurich Kloten Airport had a total of 2022 passengers in July 2.518.977. This was around 85 percent higher than in the previous year, but still 20 percent below the value that could be achieved in July 2019. The absolute peak day since the outbreak of the pandemic was July 31, 2022, with around 9.000 passengers who traveled via Zurich Airport.

The vast majority of passengers were so-called local passengers. The airport estimates their share at 1.799.137 travelers. Around 28 percent or 713.196 passengers were transfer passengers. The number of flight movements rose by 42 percent to 21.647 take-offs or landings compared to the same month last year. The monthly comparison shows that flight movements are 80 percent of the 2019 level. At 140 passengers, the average number of passengers per flight was 20 percent higher than in the previous year. Seat occupancy rose by 16 percentage points to 85 percent in the month under review compared to the same month last year.

A total of 35.941 tonnes of freight were handled at Zurich Airport in July. This corresponds to an increase of 13 percent compared to the same month last year. Compared to July 2019, five percent less freight was handled.

Passengers arrive at Zurich Airport very early

“All in all, we are satisfied with the summer holiday operations in Zurich, which went off without any major operational incidents. All employees did their best every day to offer passengers the smoothest possible travel experience," says Stefan Tschudin, Chief Operation Officer of Flughafen Zürich AG. "After two years of the pandemic, however, it is also clear that it is challenging to gear operations back to between 70 and 000 passengers per day."

It can be seen that many passengers arrive at the airport very early, sometimes up to six hours before departure. “That is not necessary and can put additional strain on peak times and lead to unnecessary waiting times in front of check-in counters that are still closed. Two to three hours before departure are sufficient and prevent such situations,” says Tschudin. It is important to note the check-in opening hours and, if possible, use the check-in the evening before. "In this case, arriving two hours before departure is sufficient."