The growing demand to travel and the concentration of international events such as the Copa del América anticipate a summer of high activity at Barcelona airport. With this scenario on the table, Vueling will rearm its operations in El Prat, with 7% more flights in the summer season, a considerable increase for an airline that last summer already moved an average of about 400 daily flights at the airport.
The number of routes from Barcelona will not vary too much compared to 2023, with around 90. It is on the daily frequencies of key routes where the IAG company will focus its efforts, explains Jordi Pla, Vueling Network Director. In this way, it will offer more than fifteen weekly frequencies per route on average.
“We are betting even more on Barcelona,” highlights Pla. And the airline will not increase the global capacity of its network for the summer season, with levels similar to those of last year, but will redistribute it to concentrate it to a greater extent in Barcelona. The reinforcement of flights in El Prat has been worked on with the Catalan Tourism Agency and Turisme de Barcelona, who want to ensure maximum connectivity during the America's Cup. The sports competition begins in August, but associated activities and events will be held before, so the arrival of travelers to the city is expected to skyrocket. This, together with the increase in supply from Vueling, which already has a market share close to 42% in El Prat, suggests a record summer for the airport, with the negotiation of its open expansion.
Last year, the airline chaired by Marco Sansavini transported more than 20.5 million passengers in Barcelona out of a total of 49.9 million, according to Aena data. Its immediate competitor, Rynair, moved 8.5 million. They are followed by Iberia (1.9 million), easyJet (1.47), Lufthansa (1.34) and Wizzair (1.23), an airline that has grown exponentially in El Prat in recent years.
Vueling will follow a strategy similar to that of Barcelona in the rest of its network, especially in France and Germany, with frequency growth on strategic routes, without increasing destinations.
In parallel, it continues with its deseasonalization strategy, which has led it to open flights with the Middle East or Egypt in winter – now reduced due to the conflict in Gaza – as well as maintaining regular flights to Menorca throughout the year.
