Travel demand for the summer of 2023 is very high. In Geneva, more than 3 million passengers will pass through the airport during July and August. This summer, 123 destinations are on offer from Geneva. Genève Aéroport, easyJet, SWISS, Swissport, dnata and all the actors working at the hub are mobilised, ready to welcome passengers and offer a stable service during the summer despite the many challenges in the airspace.
According to Genève Aéroport’s forecasts, passenger traffic in July and August will reach 92% to 93% of the pre-pandemic level of 2019. This should represent 3.08 million passengers. In terms of the number of flights, Genève Aéroport is forecasting 94% to 96% of the volume of summer 2019.
For the summer of 2023, the range of services available from Geneva is considerable: 123 destinations operated by 44 airlines are available to passengers, not only to Europe but also beyond, notably to North America, the Middle East and Africa. There are twelve long-haul destinations with daily frequencies, most of which have been increased since this summer (Air China, Ethiopian Airlines and Delta). This network is an asset for the Swiss tourism sector, which will be welcoming a large number of foreign visitors this summer.
Over the last few weeks, preparatory work has been carried out with all those involved at the hub: reinforcing teams, coordinating with all agents, ensuring with partners that teams are available and reinforced according to traffic forecasts, etc. The entire airport hub is now ready to welcome passengers.
During this busy period, it is still important to prepare well for your departure. It is best to allow enough time for check-in and security, i.e. at least two hours. Genève Aéroport would like to remind passengers that a number of services can be purchased online on its website, including Priority Lane (queue-cutting at security checkpoints) and carbon offsetting.
The stability of flight operations is not only in the hands of Genève Aéroport, the airlines that operate there and the local partner companies.
"There are external factors over which we have little or no influence, such as the fragility of certain airports, air traffic congestion, strikes or weather conditions. Last-minute flight disruptions or cancellations for reasons beyond Geneva's control cannot be ruled out. Nevertheless, we will do our utmost to guarantee our passengers a stable and peaceful air service during the summer of 2023," says André Schneider, CEO of Geneva Airport. "Although the summer is full of challenges, together we look forward to this period with confidence".
Summer season for easyJet and SWISS
easyJet is planning a strong summer and is deploying capacity close to 2019 across its entire network. In Geneva, more than 80 destinations will be offered, including two new ones: Venice and La Coruña (Spain).
Summer 2023 also marks the start of a new phase for easyJet: the recruitment of 142 new crew members to accompany the arrival of 3 new Airbus A320s.
Two aircraft and 117 additional cabin crew will join the Geneva base. This investment allows the airline to return to a pre-Covid fleet, a sign of its investment in connectivity and direct and indirect local employment.
"In collaboration with our partners, we have been preparing for the summer season, which promises to be very busy in terms of demand. At the same time we are launching the recruitment of 117 new crew members in Geneva. Our crews receive high-quality training so that they can give our customers the best possible welcome and ensure their safety on board. The large number of applications we receive and the average length of service of eight years for our cabin crew and ten years for our pilots demonstrate the attractiveness of easyJet as an employer.
We are also delighted to be able to work with the OCE, with whom we have recruited over forty candidates in recent years, and already have three recruits from the first wave of selection carried out in May," says Jean-Marc Thévenaz, Director of easyJet Switzerland.
SWISS offers 41 routes from Geneva in the summer season, with daily services to Athens, Lisbon, Porto and London. The most popular destinations are Greece, Portugal and Spain, and New York with one daily flight. The booking trend is very positive.
"We have anticipated and taken a series of measures to ensure that our passengers can count on us over the summer. For example, we have planned our flight schedule conservatively, enabling us to react to any unforeseen events. We have deliberately decided to offer around 90% of our pre-crisis capacity from Geneva this summer. In addition, SWISS plans to recruit a total of 1000 cabin crew this year, 750 of whom have already been hired, including 60 dedicated to the Geneva base. So we have created the right conditions for the coming summer. We are doing our utmost to ensure that our passengers can travel with complete peace of mind during the summer of 2023, but the stability of our operations is not in our hands alone, " points out Romain Vetter, SWISS Director for French-speaking Switzerland.
Swissport starts the summer season with confidence
To cover operational needs, Swissport has continued to strengthen its workforce with the hiring and training of 110 employees between January 2023 and today. With the same number of flights as before the pandemic, Swissport is starting the summer season with confidence.
Swissport is also involved in managing the follow-up of baggage delivered late or lost. At the heart of European destinations and certain connection hubs, Swissport Geneva could be faced with late baggage arrivals. Faced with this uncertainty, Swissport Geneva is ready to reinforce its "Lost&Found" teams in the event of a mass arrival of baggage delivered late or lost abroad. In such a situation, however, Swissport Geneva remains dependent on the time it takes to receive baggage from the airports concerned and hand it over to passengers.
Dnata ready for summer 2023
With the gradual resumption of traffic since the lifting of travel restrictions in many countries, dnata is focusing on the reliability of its operations for the summer of 2023. Dnata is aware of the operational challenges and imponderables that may affect Geneva as a domino effect.
"We will do our utmost to minimise these consequences and get customers to their destinations as quickly and safely as possible. dnata will be paying particular attention to ensuring that the first wave of departures is on time, as well as, where possible, reducing and making up for delays on flights operating in the evening. We have strengthened our workforce, in particular by making permanent the seasonal employees who joined dnata last winter," says Alexandre Koenig, Commercial Director of dnata Switzerland.