Brussels Airport handled 11,684,976 passengers in the first half of 2026, up 3.6% from the same period last year, the airport said on Wednesday.
The increase was partly driven by eight new routes launched from Zaventem since January, including five long-haul destinations.
Passenger growth came despite several external disruptions affecting the airport’s operations, including the fallout from the conflict in the Middle East and a series of strikes.
Two national union action days in March and May affected about 55,000 passengers in total.
A spontaneous strike by air traffic controller skeyes on 2 June also led to the cancellation of all scheduled flights that day, disrupting 25,000 travellers.
Cargo activity also rose, with freight volumes up 8.3% year on year in the first six months of 2026.
Over the period, Brussels Airport handled nearly 420,000 tonnes of goods.
In June alone, the airport welcomed 2,215,965 passengers, an increase of 1.7% compared with June 2025.
The 10 most popular destinations in June were the same as in the previous two months: Spain, Italy, Greece, Germany, Turkey, Morocco, Portugal, France, the United States and Switzerland.
Transfer passengers accounted for 15% of travellers departing from Brussels Airport, up on June 2025, mainly on routes to Europe, Africa and North America.
Freight volumes rose 12.2% last month to 70,895 tonnes.
