April 13 (SeeNews) - Combined passenger numbers at the Bulgarian coastal airports of Varna and Burgas increased 71.6% year-on-year to 216,218 in the first three months of 2018, Germany’s Fraport Group, which operates the airports, said on Friday.
Passenger traffic at Burgas airport grew by an annual 16.0% to 37,610, while passengers at Varna airport increased 90.8% to 178,608, Fraport said in a monthly statistical report.
In March alone, combined passenger traffic at the two airports rose 67.6% to 82,286.
Combined aircraft movements at the two airports rose by 28.8% on the year to 2,319 in January-March. At Burgas airport, aircraft take-offs and landings decreased by 11.9% to 526, while at Varna airport, aircraft movements increased 49.0% to 1,793.
Cargo handled at the two airports decreased by 29.7% to 2,462 tonnes in the first three months of the year.
Fraport Twin Star Airport Management told SeeNews earlier this year it plans to invest 256 million levs ($160.6 million/130.9 million euro) by 2027 in the two Bulgarian airports it operates.
In 2006, Fraport Twin Star Airport Management, a 60/40 joint venture of Fraport and Bulgarian company BM Star, won a 35-year concession to manage the two coastal airports.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)