Growth in April

A total of 1,258,516 passengers passed through Edinburgh Airport in April 2019, but the figures received a cautious welcome as a slowdown in growth is expected.

The figures are 4.3% ahead of the same month last year and is the busiest April on record.

However, Chief Executive Gordon Dewar said the Scottish Government’s decision to abandon Air Departure Tax will make record figures harder to come by:

“We’re always happy to see more passengers coming to and travelling out of Edinburgh as it demonstrates the desire people have to broaden their horizons by visiting countries all over the world.

“Tourism is a sector that is key to Scotland. From hoteliers and restaurants to tour companies and visitor attractions, it’s an industry which employs thousands of people and drives economic growth. But we are in danger of seeing that growth and prosperity fall.

“Winning routes is hard but keeping them is even harder. And when you continue to implement the highest aviation tax in the world, you make it even more difficult. Unfortunately, when we should be looking to build on the tourism sector, we are making Scotland less attractive by forcing this tax on people and discouraging airlines from operating in Scotland.”