Edinburgh Airport announces record passenger numbers

Middle East airlines such as Etihad have helped boost passenger numbers at Edinburgh Airport. Photo: Ian Georgeson

July was the busiest ever month at Edinburgh, with a 9.6 per cent increase on the previous record of a year ago.

International traffic increased by 18.5 per cent but this was offset by a 3.6 per cent fall in UK passenger numbers.

The overall increase was attributed mainly to expansion by EasyJet and Ryanair.

The news will come as a boost to the airport after a string of bad publicity this week.

The Civil Aviation Authority ranked it the worst in the UK for looking after disabled passengers, while the RAC motoring group highlighted that it had among the highest pick-up and drop-off parking charges.

The 1,332,282 passengers last month compare to 1,215,889 in July last year.

Chief executive Gordon Dewar said: “We are greatly encouraged to have smashed another record.

“While we welcome this growth, it underlines the work we are doing to adapt and accommodate the ever-increasing number of people wanting to fly in and out of Scotland’s capital city.

“The trend of expanding international passengers continues, and with a growing proportion of inbound passengers we are helping drive tourism, economic development and additional job creation in Scotland.”

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