ARCHIVED - June passenger numbers at Corvera airport a staggering 25,827 per cent higher

The June total rose to over 15,000 from only 59 in the whole month last year

Domestic flights carried more passengers to and from Corvera than those from the UK

The latest data published by airport management company Aena reveal that the number of passengers flying into or out of the Region of Murcia International Airport in June was a staggering 25,827 per cent higher than in the same month last year, but rather than pointing to an outstanding period of growth this merely illustrates the degree to which air travel has been decimated by the coronavirus pandemic.

The fact is that last June the Murcia airport was, to all intents and purposes, closed, and during the month there were just 59 passengers reported. In reality, the 15,297 passengers passing through the terminal building in Corvera this June were far fewer than in the last year before the pandemic: in 2019 the June figure was over 133,000, meaning that in realistic terms the latest data indicate a drop of 88.6 per cent.

Of course, the pandemic has led to similar decreases at all of Spain’s airports, but Corvera continues to show one of the most dramatic losses in terms of passenger numbers, surpassed in June only by the airports of Girona (-92.8 per cent) and Reus (-95.8 per cent) in Catalunya.

Neighbouring Alicante also struggled to recover from the pandemic: although the number of passengers flying into or out of Alicante-Elche airport in June was a remarkable 1,312 per cent higher than in the same month last year, passenger numbers at Alicante-Elche airport still 74 per cent lower than two years ago

This is due in part to the dearth of flights between Murcia and the UK, which normally account for well over 80 per cent of all passengers: during June there were just 4,920 passengers on Corvera-UK flights on account of the continuing travel restrictions, and they made up 32 per cent of the total. Of course, it is hoped that the lifting of restrictions by the British government will bring about an upturn in flights, and in mid-July there are now services in operation to and from London, Glasgow, Bristol, Birmingham, Bournemouth and Manchester.

On the other hand, though, there are encouraging signs regarding traffic to and from other destinations, and the June total was comfortably the highest in any month so far this year.

With flights linking the Costa Cálida to various other parts of Spain (Volotea, Vueling and Binter are offering routes to Gran Canaria, Menorca, Palma de Mallorca, Asturias, Bilbao, Santander and Barcelona) domestic travellers numbered 5,759, or 37.3 per cent of the total, and a further 2,707 were on board services to and from Belgium.

The new services between Corvera and the Moroccan airports of Oujda and Casablanca carried a total of 1,302 passengers during the month, while those flying between Murcia and the Czech Republic and Turkey carried 307 and 255 people respectively. These are trivial contributions in the context of passenger numbers in 2019, but as international tourism struggles to recover from the coronavirus pandemic they are indications that in the future these routes could prosper and bring more variety to the arrivals and departures boards at Corvera!