23.01.25

THE ITALY-MONGOLIA AGREEMENT PAVES THE WAY FOR A DIRECT FLIGHT BETWEEN MILAN BERGAMO AIRPORT AND ULAN BATOR

Direct flights between Italy and Mongolia are now possible thanks to the bilateral agreement between the two countries, signed in Rome at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by the minister Antonio Tajani and the Mongolian undersecretary for transportation, Sandagdorj Batbold.

The news of the signing of the document was warmly received by the president of SACBO, Giovanni Sanga, who met with a delegation of government and business representatives from Mongolia on an introductory visit to Bergamo last November, during which they visited the airport and explored the interterritorial economic and industrial fabric of the surrounding area.

“On behalf of SACBO”, stated Giovanni Sanga, “I would like to thank the minister Tajani, the members of parliament from Bergamo Alessandro Sorte and Stefano Benigni, and all those involved in setting up this significant transportation agreement. The interest shown in Milan Bergamo Airport as a logistics destination favouring the development of passenger traffic and commercial exchanges with Mongolia can now be expressed through the opening of a route connecting Ulan Bator. We are ready and willing to examine the relative terms and methods with the national airline Miat Mongolian Airlines. The direct flight between Bergamo and the capital of Mongolia will play a strategic role for the entire north of Italy, and for the multifaceted industrial and business world that revolves around it, and will undoubtedly bolster and accelerate the development of imports and exports between the two countries”.

The developments resulting from the agreement between Italy and Mongolia will set the scene for further expansion of the network of routes offered by Milan Bergamo Airport, which grants access to hundreds of destinations in Asia and Africa via direct flights connecting the hubs of Dubai, Sharja and Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen.

16.01.25

SACBO HAS BEEN ASSIGNED THE ANMIC AWARD FOR IN-AIRPORT ASSISTANCE FOR PASSENGERS WITH REDUCED MOBILITY

The Bergamo branch of ANMIC, the national association for the wounded and disabled, has assigned an award to SACBO for support services provided to passengers with reduced mobility travelling through Milan Bergamo Airport. The president of ANMIC Bergamo, Giovanni Manzoni, presented the award to the president of SACBO, Giovanni Sanga, during the annual meeting with sector associations representing disabled people held at the executive offices of SACBO.

“The association hereby expresses its profound appreciation of SACBO for the attention, regard and

constant collaboration demonstrated in ensuring quality services for disabled people at Milan Bergamo Airport: a commitment that sees Bergamo Airport as an example on an international level”, reads the motivation for the ANMIC award.

“We are honoured to have received this award”, said Giovanni Sanga, the president of SACBO.

“We constantly dedicate the utmost attention to disabled people, as well as those suffering from temporary invalidity, who require in-airport assistance. We thus guarantee everyone’s right to travel and to access all available services, facilitating operations both on departure and arrival. Deserved praise goes to the entire SACBO workforce for having achieved widely recognised standards of quality; standards that we are committed to improving ever further”.

“ANMIC and SACBO have been successfully collaborating for decades, resulting in services for reduced mobility passengers of the highest quality”, stated Giovanni Manzoni, president of ANMIC Bergamo. “We have worked together towards progressively eliminating all architectural barriers to sensory and motor accessibility, as well as to facilitating certain categories, such as families with young children. SACBO merits praise for having created the “Sala Amica”, an area of the highest standards, with a full range of comforts, qualified and helpful personnel, and a reserved area for people with autism. We have observed, over the years, the utmost willingness of the airport personnel and management under all circumstances. However, people with the right to support unfortunately do not always follow regulations, failing to make the necessary reservations for assistance. Despite this, the airport operator continues to fulfil its duties with professionalism, skill and devotion”.

The meeting involving ANMIC and associations for disabled people saw the presentation of data regarding assistance provided at Milan Bergamo Airport. In 2024, assistance was provided 88,480 times, 50% more than in 2019 and in 2022. Last year, passengers with reduced mobility (PRM) accounted for 0.74% of overall passengers (17.3 million), the highest ever. Assistance was provided to 82 passengers every one hundred flights. However, 23 percent of these did not request support. In light of this, SACBO, ANMIC and other representatives of disabled people have launched a programme to raise awareness over respect for the rules, an element that is not only essential but also required by regulations for the purpose of guaranteeing assistance that is precise and suited to the requirements of each individual PRM.

24.12.24

MILAN BERGAMO AIRPORT REACHES A NEW MILESTONE WITH 17 MILLION PASSENGERS

Today, Monday 23 December, Milan Bergamo Airport celebrated its 17-millionth passenger of the year. A milestone that reflects the trend in traffic seen throughout 2024 as a result of an increase in the average load factor on flights and the extensive network, which offered 154 destinations in 42 countries during the summer period. The number of passengers that will have passed through Milan Bergamo Airport by the end of the year will see the conclusion of a period of recovery in air traffic that began following the 2020-2021 period characterised by the pandemic and that developed significantly as early as 2022, to then continue in 2023 with almost 16 million passengers.

These figures also reflect growth in terms of quality and satisfaction, which has been confirmed both by recognition from ACI World as the best airport in the 5-to-15-million passenger category (in 2021 and 2022) and by the assigning of level 1 certification for customer management in 2024. This has been accompanied by particular care and professionalism in the provision of support to PRMs (Persons with Reduced Mobility), with the number of passengers in this category growing from 72,000 in 2023 to 87,000 in 2024 (+21%).

The increase in passenger traffic has come in line with the implementation of works financed entirely by SACBO as part of the 2023-2027 industrial plan, which has provided for investments worth 203 million. A significant portion of the work planned is dedicated to the process of sustainability, which represents a fundamental goal for underscoring the role of the airport. “We are proud of having achieved and, at this point, passed the annual threshold of 17 million passengers – stated Giovanni Sanga, the president of SACBO – A result that has been achieved thanks to broad synergies and wide-ranging vision, reflecting our capacity to adapt infrastructure and services to a constantly evolving operational scenario. This result has been made possible by significant professionalism at all levels, from the staff of the airport management company to the state organisations and the various operators concerned, ensuring recognition of the utmost quality and efficiency of services in 2024.

Quality and safety will be further bolstered with the expansion of the passenger terminal, with new check-in and security control areas. At the same time, SACBO continues to pursue its goal of sustainable development, carrying out mitigation works to benefit residents living in the vicinity of the airport. In addition, activities continue in the field of epidemiological studies promoted by the Local Health Authority in collaboration with the Bicocca University, which will pass to stage three in 2025 with the involvement of residents in the areas surrounding the airport. Furthermore, in line with the process of decarbonisation defined by SACBO, 2025 will see the expansion of the fleet of electric passenger- and aircraft-service vehicles, and the implementation of a photovoltaic plant situated in the remote parking area, which is capable of providing for more than 10% of the annual energy demands of the airport. An ecological contribution in addition to the 55% from renewable sources provided by the national grid”.

20.12.24

AIR ARABIA INAUGURATES NEW ROUTE BETWEEN FEZ AND MILAN BERGAMO

Air Arabia Maroc, a member airline of the Air Arabia Group and a leading low-cost carrier based in Casablanca, Morocco, inaugurated its new route between Fez and Milan Bergamo Airport on Thursday, December 18. The first flight, operated by an A320 aircraft, was welcomed with the traditional water cannon salute by the Fire Brigade of the Orio al Serio Airport Station. 

This is the second route operated by Air Arabia between Morocco and Milan Bergamo Airport, following the launch of the Casablanca route on May 12, 2009. The new connection with Fez, known as the cultural capital of Morocco with its imperial heritage and UNESCO-listed medina, will offer two weekly flights, operating on Wednesdays and Sundays. 

The inaugural flight from Fez to Milan Bergamo was attended by Fatima Meziane, Regional Manager Benelux Italy and Germany, Marco D’Onofrio, Italy Sales Manager for Air Arabia Maroc, and Claudio Lazzati, Italy Sales Executive for Air Maroc. 

Both the Fez and Casablanca routes, the latter operating daily except Saturdays, are served by the Airbus A320 in a single-class configuration with 174 seats. The same type of aircraft is also used by Air Arabia to connect Milan Bergamo to Cairo with five weekly flights, and to Alexandria, Egypt, during the summer schedule. 

Since December 7, 2022, Air Arabia has been operating daily flights between Milan Bergamo and Sharjah International Airport, located just a few kilometers from the city center and only twenty minutes from Dubai. This route is operated using the Airbus A321neoLR, configured in a single class with 215 seats. The stopover in Sharjah allows passengers to connect to over 80 destinations across Asia, the Middle East, the Gulf, and Africa. 

12.12.24

SACBO AND MILAN BERGAMO AIRPORT ACHIEVE 'GOLD' CERTIFICATION AS BIKE-FRIENDLY COMPANIES

Orio al Serio (BG), December 12, 2024 – Milan Bergamo Airport and SACBO S.p.A., respectively the first airport and the first airport management company in Europe to obtain the "Bike Friendly" certification, awarded in 2021 by FIAB (Italian Federation for the Environment and Cycling), reaffirm their role as virtuous companies committed to cycling. They have not only reconfirmed their SILVER certification but have also reached the highest level, GOLD.

The FIAB certification as a "Bike Friendly Company" (CFE-ITA), based on the European CFE "Cycle Friendly Employer" protocol, officially recognizes companies in Italy that stand out for creating a workplace environment that promotes and facilitates the use of bicycles. Designed and promoted by a consortium of 16 European partners, the certification allows companies to benchmark themselves against a unified European standard with consistent criteria.

The GOLD-level Bike Friendly Company certification ceremony took place today at SACBO's headquarters, in the presence of Dr. Giovanni Sanga, President of SACBO, Valeria Lorenzelli, Vice President of FIAB Italia and Head of the Everyday Mobility Area, and Christophe Sanchez, CEO of Visit Bergamo.

The recognition reaffirms the airport company’s commitment to sustainable development policies, in line with the goals of the 2030 Agenda, and rewards efforts to create conditions for the entire airport community to utilize and promote the use of bicycles. SACBO's and the airport’s attention is not only directed toward employees and airport workers but also toward tourists, both international and domestic, who increasingly seek infrastructure and services that enable “integrated mobility,” where sustainable transport means, such as bicycles, play a growing role.

Dr. Giovanni Sanga, President of SACBO, expressed great satisfaction with this achievement:
“SACBO strongly supports all initiatives aimed at intermodality and accommodating tourists and travelers interested in this mode of travel. The future is heading in this direction, and we are experiencing it firsthand with the increasing requests from tourists looking for cycling routes and dedicated services. Our airport connects well with the main Lombard and national cycle routes, and we are pleased to focus more and more on these themes, which represent a great opportunity for territorial growth from both an economic perspective and the enhancement of natural, cultural, and historical heritage. Moreover, we must not underestimate the fact that using bicycles, even in daily life, is an important factor contributing to a high quality of life. For this reason, SACBO is committed to ensuring that its employees and the entire airport community can safely choose to commute to work by bicycle. This certification confirms that we are moving in the right direction and provides further motivation to continue investing in projects dedicated to sustainable mobility.”