Vienna Airport says heavy snowstorms responsible for decline in passengers   

The number of passengers handled by Vienna Airport fell by 1.7% year-on-year to 1,374,156 in January 2013. This decline resulted, above all, from unusually heavy snowstorms in eastern Austria on 17 January 2013 and the resulting massive impact on the entire area as well as the related limitations on air travel throughout Europe because of the severe winter weather at airports throughout the region, the airport says.

Declines were recorded in the number of flight movements with minus 5.2%, maximum take-off weight with minus 3.9% and cargo with minus 6.4%. The number of transfer passengers using Vienna Airport in January 2013 was 2.4% lower than in January 2012. The number of local passengers declined 1.1% during this same period.

Passenger traffic to Eastern Europe rose by 2.9% in comparison with January of the previous year. The number of passengers travelling to Western Europe declined 1.6%, while the Middle East recorded an increase of 2.7% in January 2013.