In an interview published on our site at the end of July, the Minister of Mobility and Public Works, Yuriko Backs (DP), explained that, if investments and enlargement works were scheduled in the coming years at Luxembourg-Findel airport to support its development, “in the long term, Luxembourg needs a new airport”. What maturity? “We are not talking about next year or ten years, but perhaps 2050,” she said.
Pourfroi Lefires “You luke L’andérores the Luxembourg and Shoffu
If the reflection is, at this stage, embryonic, an essential question already arises: where this new airport could be built in Luxembourg? The answer is delicate, there are many constraints for such an infrastructure.
A second track … at the neighbor?
To support the progression of the number of passengers and thefts, the simplest would have been to build a second track in Findel. But “two tracks are not possible on the existing field,” recalls Yuriko Backes.
Our colleagues from Luxembourg word Also recall, in a comparative article that other airports in the world (Gatwick and Stansted in London, San Diego, Milan-Bergame, Stuttgart …) have only one track and however manage to absorb a number of passengers much higher than five million Findel, as well as a number of higher flights. Nevertheless, Luxembourg airport has a specificity: the volume of its freight traffic. The Findel is thus among the ten largest European freight airports, and it is the only one in the top 10 to be equipped with a single track.
Findel airport freight activity losing speed
But rather than talking about a second track or even more of a new airport, wouldn’t an alternative be to turn your eyes to neighboring countries? Using an existing airport near Luxembourg in addition to that of Findel would it be possible?
It is still too early to consider concrete scenarios.
Ministry of Mobility and Public Works
To this question, the Ministry of Mobility and Public Works, requested by Commareplies that “the idea of a new airport in Luxembourg is part of a very long -term perspective, by 2050. It is at this stage of a very preliminary reflection, which is part of a global strategic approach. In this context, it is still too early to consider concrete scenarios, including with possible collaborations or partnerships with other airport infrastructure ”.
The Lorraine Airport hypothesis already mentioned
The possibility of using a border airport is not so utopian, however, since the idea has already been mentioned in the past, with Nancy-Metz airport (or Lorraine Airport). Indeed, in May 2023, Gilles Feith, Managing Director of Luxair declared, during a media event of the newspaper The Lorraine Republican and radio Here Lorraine: “Today, Luxair does not have a flight from Metz-Nancy, but we could very well imagine doing certain complementary flights to those we already do from Luxembourg.”
Lorraine Airport is located south of Metz, 90 km and an hour’s drive from Luxembourg. It was inaugurated in 1991 and Luxair has already offered a link there, with London-Stansted, stopped in 1994, for lack of attendance. The geographic location of the airport and the total absence of connection with public transport has always been a big obstacle to its development. So much so that daily commercial flights are counting there today on the fingers of one hand and that the financial situation of Lorraine Airport is precarious.
Luxair has “no concrete short -term implementation project”
The Grand Est Regional Chamber of Accounts has also looked into the problem in a report published last February (and which also concerns the airports of Strasbourg-Entzheim and Vatry). In this document, it is pointed out “an attractiveness limited by competition from Findel-Luxembourg airport” while stressing that “the prospect of cooperation with Luxembourg airport and with the Luxair company has often been cited as a development track of Metz-Nancy Lorraine.”
Four received ideas on the plane: Luxair answers the questions that everyone is asking
The authors of this report went to ask the Luxembourg company at the end of 2024, which “said, however, that he had no concrete plan to set up line at Metz-Nancy in the short term”. This answer tempers Gilles Feith’s words to the Lorraine media in May 2023.
If such additional operations were to be envisaged one day, they would remain very limited in volume.
Service Pulture to Luxair
Requested by Commathe Luxairir press service specifies that “this track (additional flights from Lorraine Airport, editor’s note) had been mentioned in a long -term strategic framework, in connection with the evolution of demand in the large region. It had also been specified that if such additional operations should be envisaged one day, they would remain very limited in volume, taking into account the current operational and regulatory constraints, in particular the availability of devices and traffic rights. ”
Findel night flights dropped by almost 10% in the first half of 2025
The Luxembourg company concludes by indicating that it “therefore remains focused on its development at the start of Luxembourg, while listening to market developments and its institutional environment”, and recalling that Luxembourg airport “remains [sa] main basis of the company ”.
