Continued increase in air traffic in May and drone record

The number of domestic travelers has increased by 2 percent, from 2.49 million in 2023 to 2.55 million in 2024. The number of international travelers also increased, by 9 percent. The number for international travelers was 1.75 million in 2023, while we have 1.91 million in 2024. The total number of passengers is higher than the expectations we had at the beginning of the year. It is the international traffic that is performing above expectations. 

"The market development is positive, and we see that the planes are filling up better than in the same period last year. As we enter June, we see that the summer traffic has gotten off to a good start with many travel-happy Norwegians heading abroad, but also tourists coming to Norway. The share of incoming tourists is still rising after the pandemic and this coming summer is expected to be well above last year for this category of travelers," says Gaute Skallerud Riise, director of traffic development at Avinor. 

"Although the Norwegian market is developing positively year over year, we still see a weaker development in Norway compared to several of the European markets. This worries us, as it leads to weakened competitiveness for Norwegian businesses," says Riise. 

Riise further adds that the development in the international freight market continues strongly, and the positive trend for Oslo Airport continues with a growth in tons for the month of May by a full 17 percent.  

“This is mainly about seafood, but we see that more and more e-commerce is finding its way via Oslo Airport instead of being transported by truck from other hubs in Europe, concludes Riise.” 

Passenger Numbers and Flight Movements in May
There were 64,419 flight movements in May. This represents a marginal change compared to May last year, when the number was 64,480. 

Oslo Airport had the most travelers with 2,347,000 passengers, an increase of 7 percent from last year. Bergen Airport had the second most, with 583,000 travelers, a 1 percent increase from last year. Trondheim Airport had the third most, with 360,000 travelers, a 1 percent increase from last year. 

See more traffic figures in the attachments. 

New Record in Drone Flights – Almost 3000 Flights in May
In May, 2996 drone flights were reported in Ninox Drone, Avinor's system for managing drones. 

"Sun and summer significantly increase the use of drones. We see more than a doubling from May 2023," says Mats Gjertsen, who leads Avinor's drone program. 

"In addition, we have now passed 10,000 registered users in Ninox Drone, and we encourage everyone who plans to fly a drone to download the app," says Gjertsen. 

See Avinor's traffic figures here: Statistics - Avinor