Billund boasts two fresh airlines and 22 new routes
A post Covid-19 demand boom is happening in Billund. No, it’s not for plastic bricks from the nearby LEGOLAND Billund resort, its coming from the city’s airport – the second largest in Denmark, handling 3.7 million passengers in 2019.
“This year SWISS and Vueling have both started operations from Billund for the first time,” enthuses an excitedJesper Klausholm, Head of Airline Relations and Marketing and CMO at the airport. ”However our resurgence is not just coming from fresh new carriers but also our existing airlines have seen potential in the strong market surrounding Billund.” The results are phenomenal, as the Danish airport has welcomed 22 new connections so far this year: Vueling – Barcelona, Gran Canaria, Malaga, Palma, Paris; Swiss – Zurich; Ryanair – Bologna, Venice Treviso, Chania, Barcelona, Brussels Charleroi, Memmingen, Gothenburg, Lisbon, Seville, Sibiu, Wroclaw, Tallinn; Wizz Air – Belgrade, Tirana, Skopje, Sarajevo.
In addition, from next summer (June 2022) Billund will become a base airport for Corendon Airlines with one aircraft and routes initially to: Kos, Chania, Heraklion, Rhodes, Antalya, Gazipaşa-Alanya, Mila-Bodrum and Palma de Mallorca!
One particular region where Billund has found a lot of new route success recently, made clear by the list of new connections above, is Eastern Europe. “Over the last five years we have found the key to developing new routes in Eastern Europe. Through careful collaboration with our airline partners we have successfully developed 18 new routes from this part of the continent to Billund,” explains Klausholm.
Strong catchment
Key to the airport’s ongoing success is its robust catchment area. “Although Billund as a town has a modest population of just under 7,000 people the catchment area is a strong fit for the airport,” says Klausholm. “It is not only in the industrial heart of Denmark with large companies like LEGO, Grundfos, Siemens Gamesa, Vestas, Arla and Danish Crown, but it is also in the middle of many attractive tourist sites. These include the world-famous LEGOLAND Billund Resort and the UNESCO-protected Wadden Sea, where oyster safaris are a big draw for international tourists. Large nearby cities like Aarhus offer shopping, gastronomy and great cultural experiences with a local touch,” adds the CMO.
The attractiveness of the prosperous Billund area both in terms of business and tourist traffic, is illustrated in the airport’s passenger throughput. 30% of traffic at the airport is generated by inbound traffic flows.
Continued investment
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Billund has continued with its infrastructure investments meaning that its terminal will be able to handle seven million passengers in the future. “Thanks to our great cooperation with our partner carriers, this terminal extension will hopefully soon be filled with happy travellers,” concludes Klausholm.
