Bratislava airport saw 15-percent rise in passenger numbers in 2015

Bratislava's M.R. Štefánik Airport (BTS) handled 1.56 million passengers in 2015, which amounts to a hike of 15.4 percent on the year, or 208,686 people, stated the airport's general director Ivan Trhlík. "This is a trend that's sustainable", said Trhlík. It's estimated that 2016 will see a further rise to 1.8 million passengers. As many as 2.1 million passengers should be handled by the airport next year. When it comes to regular destinations, London, Dublin, Milan, Rome and Brussels came top. For charter flights, Antalya (Turkey), Burgas (Bulgaria), Rhodes (Greece), Hurghada (Egypt) and Heraklion (Greece) were the most popular destinations. Meanwhile, 24,622 flights were recorded at BTS last year, which represents a rise of 14.6 percent year-on-year. With 1.01 million passengers - an extra 24.5 percent on the year - Ryanair was the busiest carrier at BTS by a long way. Charter carrier Travel Service carried 396,450 passengers, which was an increase of 4.2 percent on an annual basis. Czech Airlines posted a fall of 7.7 percent, as it carried close to 31,975 people. Low-cost carrier flydubai, which launched a service between Bratislava and Dubai in December 2014, carried 29,606 passengers last year. Russian low-cost airline Pobeda Airlines has handled 3,338 travellers between Bratislava and Moscow since launching its service at the airport last month.