OREANDA-NEWS. September 20, 2010. In the first 8 months of this year, Vilnius International Airport (VIA) served 962,714 passengers, which is a 10 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. In August, the number of passengers grew 7 per cent (148,281) compared to the same month last year, reported the press-centre of Vilnius Airport.

In the first 8 months of this year, the number of flights at Vilnius Airport increased one-fifth (18,044 passengers) compared to the same period last year, and the amount of cargo handled increased one-fourth and totalled 3,314 tonnes. In August alone, the number of flights increased 12 per cent and the amount of cargo handled increased 26 per cent compared to August 2009.

‘The increase in the number of scheduled flights this summer compared to last summer is clear. The number of passengers on most scheduled flights is also going up. The number of passengers travelling to Copenhagen has grown, Lufthansa has increased the number of passengers carried, and LOT has maintained its volumes from last year. Dublin and London remain popular destinations for Lithuanians, and Aerosvit is transporting more passengers to Kyiv’, Tomas Vaisvila, general manager of Vilnius Airport, said.

According to the results for the first 8 months of the year, Vilnius ranks second among the airports in the Baltic States. The first position is occupied by Riga with 3,134,000 passengers, and Tallinn remains third with 908,801 passengers.   

The favourite destination from Vilnius is Copenhagen. Other popular destinations include Riga, London, Frankfurt, Dublin, and Prague.