New Figures

93,706 instead of 110,678: Passenger numbers down in Linz

The Frankfurt flight did not boost the numbers.(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / WERNER KERSCHBAUMM)

The downward trend continues: Despite the new flight route to Frankfurt, which received millions in subsidies, Linz Airport recorded significantly fewer passengers in the first half of the year than in the previous year. The Greens are now ramping up political pressure and demanding detailed figures on the utilization of the controversial route.

In terms of passenger numbers, Linz Airport is following a nationwide trend: with the exception of Salzburg and Innsbruck, passenger numbers declined at all domestic airports. This is shown by figures published Monday by the Association of Austrian Commercial Airports.

At Linz Airport, passenger volume in the first six months of the year stood at 93,706 travelers—well below 100,000 passengers. By comparison, 110,678 passengers were recorded during the same period last year. This represents a decline of 15.3 percent, the steepest drop among the six airports. Innsbruck (656,879 passengers; up 4.2 percent) and Salzburg (now 962,088; up 2.8 percent) were able to increase their passenger volume.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/stock.adobe.com)

There is therefore no sign of a recovery—which is why the Greens in the state parliament are holding Markus Achleitner (ÖVP), chairman of the airport’s supervisory board and state minister of economic affairs, accountable. In a parliamentary inquiry, the party is seeking full details on the Linz-Frankfurt route, which received a 36 million euro subsidy—including how many seats were offered and how many passengers were actually carried.

Airport spokesperson Ingo Hagedorn commented on the decline: “In 2025, AUA operated the route 21 times a week in cooperation with Braathens. In 2026, the route wasn’t resumed until March 29, which means we’re missing out on Frankfurt passengers for the months of January through the end of March.”