Vienna Airport Group chose the height of the crisis to underscore its financial resilience, publishing full-year 2025 results and a bullish 2026 outlook on 2 March. Despite writing off €55 million linked to the long-delayed third runway, the operator still generated a €210.1 million net profit on revenues of €1.13 billion—up 7.2 percent year-on-year. Passenger numbers hit an all-time high of 32.6 million. For 2026 the airport is earmarking a record €330 million in capex, the lion’s share of which targets mobility-critical projects: completion of the Terminal 3 South expansion, roll-out of CT scanners at every security lane, and the next phase of biometric Entry/Exit System (EES) equipment ahead of the EU-wide April deadline. Management forecasts 30 million passengers this year, building back to 40 million by 2035. The new investment envelope also includes the Office Park 4 NEXT complex, aimed at aerospace and mobility start-ups, and further work on a ‘Space Hub’ cluster after five satellite-technology firms signed pre-lease agreements. Funding is coming entirely from cash flow—good news for bond investors concerned about rising airport debt across Europe. For global-mobility teams the message is clear: Vienna intends to cement its status as the Central-European gateway of choice, with faster security, more gates for wide-body aircraft and expanded lounge capacity. However, the operator again criticised what it calls the EU’s ‘flight-tax drag’ and warned that additional regulation could yet temper growth.
Source: Austrian Wings
