Corfu International Airport

Passenger traffic at the 14 largest airports outside of Athens - operated by Fraport Greece - showed a slight decrease in the first quarter of this year compared to the corresponding period in 2019.

Greece's 14 largest regional airports, managed by Fraport Greece, reported a million more passengers last year than in 2019. In total, passenger traffic reached 31 million passengers, or 3.4% from the record year of 2019, sources have told Kathimerini, though uncertainty is clouding the new year.

Tourist traffic data for 2019 is looking rather good, as Fraport Greece announced a first-quarter year-on-year rise of 8.2 percent at its regional airports, though this is attributed mainly to domestic rather than foreign travelers.

According to a report in German newspaper Spiegel report Fraport, the company that bought out 14 Greek regional airports is seeking financial compensation amounting to 70 million euros by the Greek state due the condition the airport terminals were in.

Apparently the Greek Civil Aviation Authority had left the 14 regional airports in the darkness. Therefore, when the German-Greek consortium FRAPORT took over last April, they found a total of 12.000 burned out bulbs in the fourteen regional airports.

Greek airports are enjoying another year of growth in passenger traffic, which came to an impressive 10.3 percent in the first six months of 2017, according to official data. Athens airport has also recorded a notable rise, helped by the increase in flights.

In the first four years of its 40-year contract with the Greek state, Fraport Greece is planning to invest a sum of 400 million euros in the 14 regional airports it will take control of next month, according to the investment plan it released on Wednesday. The amount announced is 70 million euros higher than what the contract required.

The European Commission has approved the transfer of 14 Greek airports to a German-led consortium and says it's now up to Greece to finalize the deal, a key element of the country's bailout program.

The Commission says the 1.23-billion-euro agreement can go ahead as it did not involve state aid, was transparent and in line with market conditions.

Fraport Greece, majority owned by Germany's Fraport, said on Monday it has raised 620 million euros in a share offering bringing it closer to a deal to manage 14 regional Greek airports.

Athens is among the 17 top global destinations recommended by US magazine Conde Nast Traveler for 2017, topping the list among European destinations and ranking fifth overall behind Canada, the American Midwest, Cuba and Bermuda.