Letter from the Executive Board
Dear Reader
On January 1, 2020, I took over as President and Chief Executive Officer of Flughafen München GmbH – a firmly established company with excellent growth and development potential. My goal is to deliver excellence in the future also in cooperation with my management colleagues and the workforce of Europe’s only five-star airport. This means remaining agile, identifying opportunities and risks, and helping to shape change.
None of us could have anticipated that these precise qualities would be in demand in such an unprecedented way just a few weeks after I took office. The coronavirus has plunged the aviation industry into the worst crisis of the post-war era. While we are not yet in a position to fully assess the consequences, we can build on the value created in former years through the economically successful operation of our airport.
Positive course of business
Passenger volumes increased by 1.7 million or around four percent to a total of 47.9 million in 2019, in a year not yet impacted by the crisis. This makes Munich the airport location with the largest passenger growth in Germany. The number of take-offs and landings rose by around one percent to more than 417,000 aircraft movements.
Economically also, Munich Airport was on a successful course in 2019. With revenue of around €1.6 billion, we generated almost four percent more in 2019 than in the previous year. Earnings after taxes rose by 25 million euros to a new high of around 175 million euros.
Together with strict cost and spending restraint, to which our employees also contributed significantly through a reduction in working hours and short-time work, the excellent results from previous years will help us to survive the massive slump in traffic and loss of earnings in 2020 caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
«The fact that we achieved the best result in the company’s history in 2019 will stand us in good stead in 2020 in terms of withstanding the massive loss of earnings as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.»
Sustainable growth
Yet even in a time when we are consumed by the events of the day, we must not lose sight of the longer term. Our climate protection strategy is a particular focus for me in terms of the sustainable development of our company. I will do my part to ensure that Munich Airport makes every effort in future also to reduce CO2 emissions to the greatest extent possible. Decarbonization is not a far-flung future vision for me, rather a specific goal for which we have to examine and – if technically feasible – implement all possible measures. We want to ensure in this way that we are carbon-neutral by 2030 at the latest. Moreover, Munich Airport is among the first signatories to the Net Zero Carbon Initiative. We want to reduce the CO2 emissions from operation of our airport, which are open to influence, to net zero by 2050 at the latest.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Personnel Industrial Relations Director
Chief Commercial and Security Officer
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Infrastructure Officer
Improving the landside access and traffic development of Munich Airport is right at the top of my agenda also. Whether express suburban railway line or ICE station – optimizing the accessibility of Munich Airport is urgently needed and would also be in line with our sustainability ambitions.
«Experience and atmosphere, online availability and local service: The range of services in retail and catering should be more digital, individual, and emotional in order to serve our customers optimally.»
Ten years of integrated reporting
This claim is expressed not least in the fact that we have been conducting integrated reporting for ten years now and therefore providing a holistic picture of our company with the presentation of both financial and non-financial contents. Our anniversary report with the motto «What a difference» shows where Munich Airport does just that. We are focusing in this respect on three key challenges for the future: We are expanding our infrastructure sustainably, we are developing solution approaches for the demographic challenge, and we are helping to shape the digital transformation.
Staying connected
To finish, I would like to say a heartfelt thanks – also on behalf of my predecessor Dr. Michael Kerkloh and my colleagues Andrea Gebbeken and Thomas Weyer – to everyone who contributed to the success of the 2019 fiscal year: the airlines, the passengers, our business partners, representatives of authorities, shareholders, and most especially our employees who welcomed me with open arms into the airport family from the very outset. Let us be true to our brand core «Living ideas – Connecting lives» especially in these difficult times and zealously work to ensure that Munich Airport continues to make a difference in many different respects.
Yours sincerely,
Jost Lammers
