Munich beyond connections
Munich Airport is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year by reinventing the concept of an ‘airport city’. It offers a seamless and convenient gateway to Europe.
Donning many a feathers in its cap, Munich Airport is the only European airport that has been awarded a 5-star ranking by Skytrax and was voted ‘ The Best Airport Terminal in the World’ in 2017. According to Corinna Born, Director of International Media Relations, Munich Airport, the location of the airport serves as the gateway to other European destinations. “We think we have a very unique airport concept because we are an airport city offering a clinic, variety of events, plethora of shopping and dining outlets, hotels, visitor’s centre, kindergarten, beer garden, etc.,” says Born.
Commenting on the connectivity from India, Born informs that there are two nonstop daily flights from Delhi and Mumbai, operated by Lufthansa to Munich. Munich Airport serviced over 42 million passengers in 2016 and is expecting to register a three per cent growth in 2017. Of the total traffic at the Airport, only 30 per cent is contributed by transit passengers. “Over 59,000 Indian nationals arrived at Munich Airport in 2016. Out of the total arrivals, 64 per cent were on business trips while the rest were for leisure. We feel there is a lot of opportunity and capacity to stay in Munich, visit and explore the city and beyond,” adds Born. Adding on transit flights, she elaborates that on the long-haul network within the Lufthansa Alliance System, 13 onward connections to North America are offered, which is one of the main connections taken by Indians.
The Airport strives towards providing its passengers a seamless travel experience and is upgrading its technological facilities. “We have recently come up with InfoGates, which offers real-time video support to passengers and helps them get their bearings more quickly and allows them to request individual directions,” points out Born. In April 2016, the Airport opened Europe’s most modern airport facility–a satellite terminal. “It is a mid-field terminal connecting T2-the Starline servicing terminal through an underground people mover. It increased Munich Airport’s capacity by 11 million passengers, making Munich Airport an even more attractive transit hub,” adds Born.