During 2007, LFV (now Swedavia) airports handled approximately 34 million passengers, with 14 million travelling on domestic flights and 20 million on international flights. Domestic air travel in Sweden has remained relatively unchanged since the beginning of the 1990s. The market is fully developed and, with the expansion of better roads and rail connections, there is less demand for air services on distances of 500 km and less.

International air travel grows
However, international air travel continues to grow, and when the European air travel market was deregulated at the end of the 1990s airlines were free to offer services on whatever route they chose. This has meant that, over the last 10 years, the choice of destinations at Swedish airports has increased dramatically. Many of the airports have seen the establishment of extensive low-fare operations, and with increased competition in the international market, ticket prices are under pressure. The result of these changes is that private travel has expanded considerably over the last few years and today the majority of international travellers in Sweden come from the private sector.

Most popular destinations
The most popular destinations are to the capital cities of our neighbours. Copenhagen is still an important hub for those travelling to destinations further afield. Other European capitals are also popular destinations for both private and business travellers. The Mediterranean is likewise a common destination and has benefited from the attractive prices and variety of destinations available over the last few years. During the winter season, the Canary Islands is still the main destination but has recently  experienced competition from other destinations including Thailand. However, on an annual basis, the US is the single most important intercontinental market for Sweden.

Airlines
SAS is still the dominant player in the Swedish air travel market. This holds for both domestic and international service, given that the company’s hub, located at Stockholm-Arlanda Airport, is where a large part of Swedish air traffic connects. There are still a large number of smaller airlines active in the domestic sector, often only providing services on one route. Companies rent capacity from enterprises whose business concept is to provide aircraft and crews to other airlines. In many cases, these operations receive support from the local business community, which is strongly dependent on efficient air traffic connections. Two examples of this are Gotlandsflyg and Kullaflyg. A number of smaller airlines, together with Malmö Aviation, utilise Stockholm-Bromma Airport for their operations. The central location and short lead times at the airport are perfectly suited for business-intensive domestic traffic.

Low cost providers
Apart from SAS, it is the low-cost providers who are responsible for the growth in the international market. Ryanair transports a considerable number of passengers and continues to expand its Swedish operations. Norwegian has also grown dramatically over the last few years, reaping the benefit of the growing market. This is also true of companies solely involved in charter services, which have experienced good growth at the major airports and also diversifying into providing direct routes from a large number of smaller Swedish airports.

The future
Sweden is dependent upon efficient air travel connections both on the domestic front and to important European and global markets. Through a combination of increased competition, attractive prices and a wide variety of destinations, the Swedish air travel market is likely to grow over the coming years.