Passenger growth down, revenues up at Trudeau

[ErickMontreal]

Passenger growth down, revenues up at Trudeau

The Gazette

Published: 1 hour ago

 

Passenger traffic at Montreal-Trudeau International Airport grew by a lacklustre 0.4 per cent during the second quarter of 2008, as the economic slowdown in the U.S. drove down transborder traffic by four per cent, the Aéroports de Montréal said today.

 

For the first six months of 2008, traffic at Montreal-Trudeau rose 2.8 per cent to 6.3 million passengers over the same period in 2007, mostly fueled by international flights.

 

While an increase in payroll and pension payments drove up operating costs by 8.6 per cent during the first six months of fiscal 2008, revenues as of June 30, 2008 were up by $24.8 million, a 15.9 per cent rise over the half-year figure for 2007. The increase is mainly attributable to increased aeronautical fees and airport improvement fees, as well as small growth in passenger traffic, the airport authority said.

 

Airport fees are now being contested by carriers who have asked the ADM for a break as they struggle with high fuel prices. The ADM usually sets its rates during the fall.

 

And the authority appears to have some leeway.

 

For the second quarter of 2008, the ADM made $2.6 million in revenues, over expenses, up from $2.3 million during the same period a year earlier. For the first half of the year, the airport authority made $11 million in net earnings, compared to $2.4 million for the same period in 2007.