Glasgow Airport Market Analysis

NOTE: Passenger numbers taken from CAA monthly statistics. Route information taken from own research and airline press releases which are linked at the end of this post.

This is the third of our market analysis posts focusing on Scotland’s airports in summer 2022 and summer 2023. This post will focus on Glasgow Airport (GLA).

Located to the west of Glasgow the airport is owned by AGS Airports – who also own Aberdeen and Southampton Airports. The airport is the second busiest in Scotland, and is home to a mix of domestic and international routes.

Similar to our Edinburgh Airport post we have included a contents list below, allowing you to jump to a specific section.

European Market Analysis

In summer 2022 Glasgow Airport was home to 46 European routes across 17 countries. Although not being host to any exclusive countries, GLA was host to Scotland’s only flights to Pula in Croatia and Salzburg in Austria.

In summer 2023 GLA increased its European routes to 47 with the countries served remaining at 17. Glasgow also increased its exclusive routes by hosting flights to Donegal and Girona while maintaining Salzburg flights.

Cut Routes: Marseille, Paris Orly, Pula & Venice
Additional Routes: Bologna, Donegal, Girona, Lisbon & Porto

The table below breakdown the passenger number on each European route in both summer 2022 and summer 2023, as well as highlighting the change between the two years and any other notes that are relevant. The table is organised alphabetically by country.

Destination	Summer 2022	Summer 2023	Change	Notes
Salzburg	2,641	2,614	-27	GLA Exclusive*

Brussels CRL	15,497	18,510	+3,013

Burgas	10,395	11,266	+871

Dubrovnik	8,502	9,103	+601
Pula	5,391	0	-5,391	GLA Exclusive, route dropped in S23**
Split	18,300	15,961	-2,339

Larnaca	10,451	11,267	+816
Paphos	40,796	40,547	-249

Prague	6,344	8,990	+2,646

Bordeaux	6,236	5,999	-637
Marseille	7,440	0	-7,440	Route dropped in S23**
Paris CDG	85,680	97,584	+11,904
Paris Orly	18,125	0	-18,125	Route dropped in S23

Berlin	32,053	23,865	-8,188
Frankfurt	83,978	106,719	+22,741

Corfu	23,290	32,111	+8,821
Chania	6,235	6,502	+267	GLA Exclusive
Heraklion	26,858	27,637	+779
Kefalonia	7,419	7,502	+83
Kos	26,992	16,904	-10,088
Rhodes	38,564	+42,590	+4,026
Zakynthos	17,320	20,748	+3,428

Reykjavik	45,603	67,113	+21,510

Donegal	0	2,050	+2,050	GLA Exclusive
Dublin	265,836	300,039	+34,203

Bologna	0	4,221	+4,221
Rome	13,824	21,231	+7,407
Naples	17,533	8,062	-9,471
Venice	7,322	0	-7,322
Verona	7,182	6,479	-703

Malta	10,205	17,386	+7,181

Amsterdam	242,410	244,908	+2,498

Krakow	21,752	35,153	+13,401
Warsaw WMI	30,751	22,152	-8,599
Wroclaw	19,943	22,051	+2,108

Faro	97,504	99,844	+2,340
Funchal	10,476	10,266	-210
Lisbon	0	13,216	+13,216
Porto	0	16,739	+16,739

Alicante	172,606	183,207	+10,601
Barcelona	32,037	39,107	+7,070
Fuerteventura	22,708	22,018	-690
Girona	0	6,065	+6,065	Gla Exclusive
Gran Canaria	38,083	+60,587	+22,504
Ibiza	58,665	61,836	+3,171
Lanzarote	70,268	75,276	+5,008
Mahon	18,179	19,359	+1,180
Malaga	167,172	172,597	+5,425
Palma	157,310	163,745	+6,435
Reus	48,410	50,796	+2,386
Tenerife	121,811	130,105	+8,294

*EDI had a small number of flights at the start of the season. **See “What Does S24 section look like” for news

As the above table shows, GLA had a mixed performance when it comes to European routes. Of the 49 routes mentioned above, 15 recorded a reduction in passengers, while 34 recorded increases.

Overall GLA was able to increase its European passenger numbers by 185,530 in summer 2023 when compared to summer 2022

Transatlantic Market Comparison

In summer 2022 Glasgow Airport was home to 4 transatlantic routes in 3 countries.

In summer 2023 this was reduced to 3 destinations in 3 countries, following Westjet pulling flights to Halifax, alongside their flights to Toronto (this route is also served by Air Transat)

The table below breakdown the passenger number on each transatlantic route in both summer 2022 and summer 2023, as well as highlighting the change between the two years and any other notes that are relevant. The table is organised alphabetically by country.

Destination	Summer 2022	Summer 2023	Change	Notes
Halifax	17,245	0	-17,245	GLA Exclusive, Route dropped in S23
Toronto	73,662	63,415	-10,247

Cancun	45,485	31,272	-14,213

Orlando MLB	25,414	18,925	-6,489

As the above table shows, GLA suffered reductions or cuts on all transatlantic services in summer 2023. As a result, the number of transatlantic customers fell by 48,194 when compared to summer 2022.

North Africa and Middle East Market Comparison

In summer 2022 Glasgow was home to 4 routes to Turkiye, alongside a daily service to Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

In summer 2023 this increased to 5, with the addition of a weekly service to Enfidha in Tunisia.

The table below breakdown the passenger number on each North Africa and Middle East route in both summer 2022 and summer 2023, as well as highlighting the change between the two years and any other notes that are relevant. The table is organised alphabetically by country.

Destination	Summer 2022	Summer 2023	Change	Notes
Enfidha	0	9,107	+9,107	GLA Exclusive

Antalya	99,763	100,627	+864
Bodrum	8,731	14,930	+6,199
Dalaman	111,279	113,618	+2,339
Izmir	8,666	10,647	+1,981

Dubai	148,296	200,278	+51,982	GLA Exclusive

As the above table shows Glasgow Airport maintained growth on every route in this market, and was able to increase its passenger numbers in this market by 72,472.

Domestic Market Comparison

In both summer 2022 and summer 2023 Glasgow Airport maintained its domestic destinations, therefore leaving the total at 22. The biggest change to the network was the collapse of Flybe 2.0 at the start of 2022. As a result, Birmingham was reduced from a two airline route to an easyJet exclusive route.

The table below breakdown the passenger number on each domestic route in both summer 2022 and summer 2023, as well as highlighting the change between the two years and any other notes that are relevant.

Destination	Summer 2022	Summer 2023	Change	Notes
Barra	9,309	9,427	+118	GLA Exclusive
Belfast City	42,556	60,861	+18,305
Belfat Intl	200,277	196,451	-3,826
Benbecula	16,459	16,517	+58	GLA Exclusive
Birmingham	123,549	108,777	-14,772
Bristol	192,018	187,057	-4,961
Campbeltown	4,287	5,031	+744	GLA Exclusive
Derry/Londonderry	9,191	9,305	+114	GLA Exclusive in S23
Exeter	10,332	9,922	-410
Islay	18,124	20,059	+1,935	GLA Exclusive
Jersey	41,163	43,645	+2,482
Kirkwall	11,017	10,587	-430
London LCY	117,327	123,993	+6,666
London LGW	299,474	312,897	+13,423
London LHR	426,281	507,707	+81,426
London LTN	143,326	142,678	-648
London STN	143,157	157,874	+14,717
Newquay	5,476	5,045	-431
Southampton	50,892	53,731	+2,839
Stornoway	40,760	+41,781	+1,021
Sumburgh	15,477	12,719	-2,758
Tiree	7,838	8,476	+638	GLA Exclusive

As the above table shows, GLA had a mixed performance when it comes to domestic routes. Of the 22 routes mentioned above, 8 recorded a reduction in passengers, while 14 recorded increases.

Overall GLA was able to increase its domestic passenger numbers by 116,250 in summer 2023 when compared to summer 2022.

What Does Summer 2024 Look Like?

There is a lot here, so I will break it down by airline and then a brief summary at the end.

Aer Lingus – An extra weekly departure to Dublin has been added on Saturdays
Air Transat – 25 extra round trips have been added across the summer season to Toronto.
easyJet – 1 additional based aircraft (total of 6 based a/c).
- New routes to Larnaca (2x week), Enfidha (2x week), Southampton (7x week), Hurghada (2x week).
- Marseille and Pula will return for a 10 week run in peak season (both 2x week).
- The following easyJet routes will see capacity increases (extra weekly departures shown in brackets): Malaga (+1), Belfast City (+4), Berlin (+1), Bordeaux (+1), Lisbon (full season operation, rather than planned June start).
Jet2.com – 1 additional based aircraft (total of 8 based a/c)
- New route to Verona (1x week)
- Burgas increases from 1 to 2 weekly
- Ibiza, Izmir, Rhodes, Reus and Bodrum will see extended operations due to earlier start dates.
Loganair – Donegal will run for the full season 2x week, increasing to 4 weekly at peak season.
PLAY – Will stop flights to Reykjavik
Ryanair – Currently only 1 of 7 routes are loaded – Dublin at 22 weekly. Flights to Charleroi, Alicante, Malaga, Krakow, Wroclaw and Warsaw Modlin are currently not available for booking (this would be a loss of 14 weekly flights and 3 routes (Charleroi, Warsaw and Wroclaw)).
- When asked on social media we received the following reply: “Hi George, Ryanair does fly to Krakow at the moment but we can’t confirm their summer schedules for sure. Please keep an eye on our socials for updates on new and existing routes! GM”
Southwind – New route to Antalya 1x week
TUI – 2 new based aircraft (total of 5 based a/c)
- 1 new route to Sal (Cape Verde)
- Naples will return 2x week following its suspension in S23 (the route was previously 1 weekly)
- The following TUI routes will see capacity increases (extra weekly departures shown in brackets): Antalya (+2), Enfidha (+1), Lanzarote (+1), Palma (+2), Reus (+1), Rhodes (+1), Tenerife (+1), Zakynthos (+1).
- Cancun and Orlando MLB will also see their peak season operation extended by 1 week.
WIZZ Air – 2 new routes to Budapest (2x week) and Bucharest (2x week)

As you can see there is a lot of change at Glasgow Airport next summer. Three new countries will be served – Egypt, Hungary and Romania – however current schedules also suggest a loss of service to Belgium.

Iceland will lose PLAY flights, however, Icelandair have already shown through the use of Boeing 767 aircraft that they will add capacity if necessary.

Tunisia will see a significant increase in flights, in sharp contrast to Poland which looks set to see its network shrink if Ryanair keep their current schedules.