Vienna International Airport is very happy with its investment in Malta International Airport despite the fact that MIA has fewer passengers and less growth rates than VIE.

Herbert Kaufmann, Executive Director and spokesperson of VIE, was speaking to Maltese journalists who toured Vienna as guests of MIA.

VIE was privatised in 1992, the second airport in Europe to do so. It carried 20 million passengers in 2008, a 5.2 per cent growth, and 30 per cent of its passengers were in transit. It employs 4500 directly while the airport provides employment to 18,000 people.

It has 14.3 million people in its catchment area and prides itself on its short turnaround time – 25 minutes.

It suffered a 14.6 per cent decline in passenger numbers in Q1, including a 15 per cent decline in transfer figures, but it still expects to grow once the current recession is over. By 2030 it expects to be handling 33.5 million passengers.

This explains why the company has fallen slightly late on its new terminal, which is almost ready but not in use. It also explains why the airport is only now nearing the end of the long and extenuating public hearing process for its third runway and is only now beginning its application process – it is operating without undue stress due to the decline in passenger numbers.

Speaking in more general terms, Mr Kaufmann said he was not unduly worried by the press reports of defaults in East Europe impinging on Austrian banks. The potential for growth in Eastern Europe is still there, he said.