Stockholm Bromma, Sweden can be allowed to close – operator

Stockholm Bromma operator Swedavia has told Sweden’s Ministry of Enterprise and Innovation that continuing operations at the secondary airport “are no longer justified on commercial grounds” and that capacity could be absorbed by the capital’s main gateway, Stockholm Arlanda. The impact assessment, whose conclusions the state-owned operator dispatched to the ministry, was based on the commercial considerations of a possible political decision to close Bromma ahead of time. The assessment was carried out “at the owner’s request,” Swedavia said in a statement on September 14. Swedavia, which operates ten airports across the country, said that both the COVID-19 pandemic and the suspension of services and ongoing restructuring at BRA – Braathens Regional Airways (BRX, Trollhättan) had hastened a closure otherwise expected in 2038 when Bromma’s lease with the City of Stockholm expires. “The aviation market is facing an unprecedented crisis. Bromma will most likely have excess capacity due to low traffic volume for a long time going forward. In the long term, the cost of this will be borne by passengers and already-wounded airlines, which we do not believe is possible,” opined Jonas Abrahamsson, Swedavia’s president and chief executive. If Bromma closes, Swedavia believes that commercial traffic there can be handled at Arlanda in the short term without bringing forward any significant further investments. But in the longer term, more infrastructure investments would be needed, including an additional – fourth – runway at Arlanda. “The continuation of operations at Bromma is no longer justified on commercial grounds, and consolidation of air traffic in the Stockholm region at Stockholm Arlanda is possible,” said Åke Svensson, the operator’s chairman of the board, while stressing that Arlanda must be given “the long-term conditions to develop in line with the needs of society.” Stockholm Arlanda currently has three runways, the 3,300-metre-long 01L/19R, 2,500-metre-long 08/26, and 2,500-metre-long 01R/19L, but most of the time only two are active.