Brussels Airport was named the overall winner at this year’s Routes Europe Marketing Awards, with it also taking the over 20 million passengers category. In recognition of its extensive B2B marketing efforts, Budapest Airport was awarded in the 4-20 million passengers category, while Billund Airport won in the under four million annual passengers category.
Brussels Airport was named the overall winner at this year’s Routes Europe marketing awards, with it also taking the over 20 million passengers category. Collecting the prize were the airport’s Geert Van Dessel, Senior Manager Aviation Development; Léon Verhallen, Head of Aviation Development; and Jan Van de Reyd, Senior Manager Aviation Development.
Brussels Airport, host of this year’s ACI EUROPE/World General Assembly, Congress & Exhibition (18-20 June), was named the overall winner at this year’s Routes Europe Marketing Awards, with it also taking the over 20 million passengers category. The airport was recognised for its efforts to adopt a ‘have seats’ (route development), ‘will travel’ (market development) strategy to support its airline partners in delivering profitable and sustainable routes. Marketing partnerships with regional tourism boards, as well as a new destination and passenger growth incentive scheme, have helped to deliver 20 new cities, including Mumbai, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, to the airport’s rapidly expanding route network over the past 12 months.
Leon Verhallen, Brussels Airport’s Head of Aviation Development, said: “We had not been nominated for two years in a row, so we are absolutely delighted to win this award and be recognised by our European clients. I work with a fantastic team and key to our success has been how we work with our existing airline partners, in addition to the new carriers we are looking to attract. It is a fantastic achievement by the team and we are now looking forward to building on this success and representing Europe at World Routes 2018 in Guangzhou.”
In recognition of its extensive B2B marketing efforts, Budapest Airport triumphed in this year’s Routes Europe Marketing Awards in the 4-20 million passengers category. There to collect the prestigious accolade were: Sándor Saly, Senior Airline Development Manager; Máté Ritter, Airline Development Manager; Nikoletta Gerzanics, Travel Trade Marketing Manager; Eszter Almási, Airline Development Manager; Nikoletta Huszák, Airline and Property Marketing Manager; and Balázs Bogáts, Head of Airline Development.
In recognition of its extensive B2B marketing efforts, Budapest Airport was the winner of this year’s Routes Europe Marketing Award in the 4-20 million passengers category. Meanwhile, Billund Airport won in the under four million annual passengers category, winning against competing airports from Belgium, Ireland, Netherlands and Northern Ireland.
Budapest Airport’s intense aviation development initiatives were recognised following its innovative marketing efforts, which translated into 51 consecutive months of growth – 36 of which have been double-digit.
Accepting the award on behalf of Budapest Airport, Balázs Bogáts, Head of Airline Development, said: “We’re ecstatic to have won and I thank the airlines for the recognition! Our category has some very strong competition and has always been so closely fought, so we’re absolutely thrilled we have regained the title after a seven-year hiatus.” He added: “It’s a real team effort. The combined work of everyone involved at the airport has put us at the forefront of airline route development, plus the award signifies that it is the global airline industry which sees this too. What an honour!”
Kam Jandu, CCO, Budapest Airport, also commented: “We are so very proud for being recognised for one of the most widely-respected industry achievement awards. The award is testament to the non-stop hard work of a fantastic team. We strongly believe in our innovative marketing activities, the messages they carry, and how this translates into real business results.”
Kjeld Zacho Jørgensen, CEO and Jesper Klausholm, Head of Airline Relations & Marketing from Billund Airport celebrate the Danish gateway’s win in the Routes Europe 2018 Marketing Awards in Bilbao. The West Denmark airport beat competition from across Europe to receive the prize in the under four million annual passengers category.
Billund Airport was also celebrating after receiving the Routes Europe 2018 Marketing Award in the under four million annual passengers category. Other airports nominated in Billund’s category were Belfast City Airport (which was highly commended), Cork Airport, Groningen Airport and Liege Airport.
“We are delighted to have won this award, primarily because our partner airlines have recognised what we do in firstly attracting them to serve the airport, but then to make their services sustainable,” said Kjeld Zacho Jørgensen, CEO, Billund Airport. “I would also like to thank my airport marketing team, as their dedication, commitment and professionalism has delivered this well-deserved award. It has been a real team effort.” Winning the award was particularly poignant for Zacho Jørgensen, as he leaves the West Denmark airport after an eight-year tenure as CEO in May.
