Memmingen Airport approached the million mark again last year: following a corona-related loss in the previous year, 2021 was characterised by a process of consolidation. It is now hoped that the level seen in 2019 will be reached again this year.Having reached 690,780 passengers in the previous year, Memmingen Airport was able to go full throttle once more in 2021 and recorded an increase of 42 per cent with 980,503 passengers. “Despite all the restrictions in place, the desire and willingness to travel was clearly noticeable among our passengers,” explains Airport Managing Director, Ralf Schmid. The airlines flying to Memmingen have also done their best to maintain an attractive offer and even expand it to include some new destinations. The new flight connections from Memmingen to Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second-largest city, and to Lappeenranta in Finland were also recently launched. A total of 11 new destinations have been added.Last year, the airport once again helped medical staff, care and harvest workers and students to reach their places of work and study. Visits from friends and relatives also continued to play a major role. The Bundeswehr’s relief flights attracted a great deal of attention. The German Air Force Airbus A310 MedEvac landed several times at Memmingen Airport to take patients from several intensive care units in Bavaria on board and transport them to northern German states for treatment.The new year has now been kick-started with great optimism, hoping to match the previous record figure of around 1.7 million passengers from 2019. “Corona continues to pose a major challenge, especially with the new virus variant, Omikron,” says Ralf Schmid. “We will have to wait and see how things develop.” Nevertheless, it is hoped that the situation will calm down in early summer. This year, in the 15th year of scheduled flight operations in Memmingen, there is a sense of cautious optimism that it will be able to continue its ascent. “It remains to be seen just how big the impact the upcoming waves of the Coronavirus will have on tourism and air traffic,” emphasises Ralf Schmid. However, Memmingen Airport has further expanded its position as southern Germany’s leading low-cost airport in recent months, and has demonstrated with impressive flair that it is one of the most important air traffic locations in the south of Germany, which also plays a significant role for its neighbours in Austria and Switzerland.Last year’s largest construction project is also expected to contribute to further growth: the completed extension to the baggage hall with arrivals area now offers passengers enhanced comfort, while also enabling better compliance with hygiene standards. Further expansion and optimisation measures on the first floor of the terminal are to follow this year. The new ILS 06 instrument landing system will also be put into operation. In addition to this, the rainwater retention basin is to be completed. Further work is planned on the apron areas. This year, the company also wants to take a step closer to its declared goal of enabling climate-neutral flight operations. Ralf Schmid: “Our goal is zero! 0 per cent CO2 by 2030 by reducing and offsetting CO2 emissions from flight operations.” Detailed information on this can be found in Memmingen Airport’s recently published sustainability report.Sofia was the most popular destination for passengers last year, followed by Skopje and Palma. On 27 March, Ryanair will connect Memmingen Airport with Santiago de Compostela for the first time. Then it’s off to the northern Spanish city twice a week (Sunday and Thursday). For the upcoming summer, 53 destinations are already available for booking with 4 airlines from Memmingen.