Brussels Airport handled more than 5.1 million passengers during July and August 2026, with passenger traffic rising in both months. July was the airport’s busiest month since 2019, while cargo volumes surged by 22% in August after a weaker July.
The summer holidays brought more than 5 million passengers through Brussels Airport, as 5,099,695 travellers used the airport during July and August. Passenger numbers increased by 2.8% in July and a further 1.3% in August compared with the same months in 2025.
July was particularly busy, with 2,577,710 passengers; the highest monthly total at Brussels Airport since 2019. The busiest day came on 20 July, when more than 92,000 passengers passed through the airport. The figure was boosted by the construction industry’s holiday period, passengers returning from the two Tomorrowland weekends and the Formula 1 weekend at Spa-Francorchamps.
August remained busy, recording 2,521,985 passengers. The month also benefited from several new destinations compared with summer 2025, including São Paulo with LATAM, Kilimanjaro with Brussels Airlines, Halifax with Air Canada and Chengdu with Air China. Transavia‘s fourth aircraft based at Brussels Airport also provided additional capacity to Mediterranean Sea destinations.
As usual at the start of the holidays, departures outnumbered arrivals in July. The pattern reversed in August as holidaymakers returned home. Transfer passengers accounted for 11% of departing passengers in July and almost 15% in August.
Spain and Italy were the most popular countries in both months, followed by Turkey (Türkiye), Greece, Morocco, Portugal, France, Germany, the United States, and Switzerland.
Cargo rebounds in August
Cargo traffic had a contrasting summer. Brussels Airport handled 66,612 tonnes of cargo in July, down 3.2% from a year earlier. Trucked air cargo fell by 15.2%, while flown cargo declined by 1.3%.
August brought a sharp turnaround. Cargo volumes reached 70,764 tonnes, an increase of 22% compared with August 2025. Full-freighter traffic rose by 24.8%, while belly cargo on passenger aircraft increased by 28.3%. Integrator traffic was the main exception, falling by 12%.
Asia, Latin America and North America remained the main import regions.
More passengers without a major increase in flights
The rise in passenger numbers came with only a small change in the number of flights. Commercial flight movements increased by 1.1% in July but fell by 0.4% in August. Passenger flights rose by 2.5% in July and were virtually unchanged in August, while cargo flights declined in both months.
Aircraft were also carrying slightly more passengers. The average increased from 152 passengers per flight in July to 154 in August, compared with 152 in August 2025.
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