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Brussels Airport handles 67,000 tonnes of cargo in July as passenger traffic hits 2019 high

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In July, Brussels Airport welcomed around 2.6 million travellers, an increase of 2.8% compared to July 2025. ​ This was the highest monthly passenger figure recorded since 2019. The start of the summer holidays traditionally brings a strong peak in departing traffic. Cargo volumes, meanwhile, fell by 3.2% to a total of around 67,000 tonnes.

92,000 travellers on the busiest day of the summer holidays
In July, 2,577,710 passengers travelled via Brussels Airport. The busiest day was 20 July, with more than 92,000 passengers. ​ It was also the busiest day of the year so far. ​ Several factors contributed to this high figure, including the construction industry holiday period, passengers returning from the two Tomorrowland weekends and the Formula 1 weekend at Spa-Francorchamps. On average, the airport welcomed around 84,000 passengers a day last month. By comparison, on a normal day outside the summer holidays, the average is 70,000.

Brussels Airport recorded strong passenger traffic in July despite the ongoing impact of the situation in the Middle East, with flights to Tel Aviv remaining suspended. In addition, airline Transavia has been stationing a fourth aircraft at Brussels Airport since last month, which is also resulting in more frequent flights to destinations in the Mediterranean region.

Due to the start of the summer holidays, there were more departing than arriving passengers. Transfer passengers accounted for 11% of departing travellers. ​ This share tends to be lower during the summer holidays, when leisure travellers make up a greater proportion of overall passenger traffic.

The ten most popular destinations in July were Spain, Italy, Greece, Türkiye, Morocco, Germany, Portugal, France, the United States and Switzerland.

Cargo volumes down by 3.2%
The total cargo volume via Brussels Airport amounted to 66,612 tonnes in July, a decrease of 3.2% compared to the same month in 2025, mainly as a result of a decline in trucked air cargo volumes (-15.2%). Air cargo volumes decreased by 1.3% due to a drop in express services (-12.4%). In the full-cargo segment, on the other hand, we are seeing an increase of around 6.6%, while belly cargo rose by 11.4% in July.

The main import regions are Asia, Latin America and North America. For exports, Asia and Latin America also top the list, followed by Africa.

Number of flight movements rises slightly by 1.1% ​
In July, the number of commercial flight movements increased by 1.1% compared with the same month in 2025. The number of passenger flights rose by 2.5%, while cargo flights fell by 6.9% due to a decline in the full-cargo segment and express services.

 In July, there were an average of 152 passengers on board per flight, a load factor comparable to July 2025.