Early years

This section does not cite any sources. (January 2017)

The site of today's Malpensa Airport has seen aviation activities for more than 100 years. The first began on 27 May 1910, when the Caproni brothers flew their "flying machine", the Cal biplane. In the years that followed, many aircraft prototypes took off from the same site; eventually, it was decided to upgrade the farming patch to a more formal airfield. Both Gianni Caproni and Giovanni Agusta established factories on the new site; the airfield soon developed into the largest aircraft production centre in Italy.

During the 1920s and 1930s, the airfield hosted two squadrons of the Regia Aeronautica Italiana (Italian Air Force). In September 1943, Malpensa airfield was taken over by Nazi Germany's Luftwaffe when northern Italy was invaded by Adolf Hitler. Soon after their arrival, the Germans laid the airfield's first concrete runway.

After the cessation of hostilities during the Second World War, manufacturers and politicians of the Milan and Varese regions, led by banker Benigno Ajroldi of Banca Alto Milanese, restored the airfield. They aimed to make it an industrial fulcrum for the post-war recovery of Italy. The main runway, heavily damaged by German troops as they retreated from northern Italy, was rebuilt and extended to 1,800 metres. A small wooden terminal was constructed to protect goods and passengers from bad weather.

After World War II

This section does not cite any sources. (January 2017)

Malpensa Airport officially commenced commercial operations on 21 November 1948 as Aeroporto Città di Busto Arsizio, although the Belgian national flag-carrier Sabena had started flying to Brussels from here a year earlier. On 2 February 1950 Trans World Airlines (TWA) became the first company to fly long-haul flights from Malpensa, using Lockheed Constellations on their services to New York Idlewild Airport (now JFK).

A change of ownership occurred in 1952 when the Municipality of Milan took control of the airport's operator, the Società Aeroporto di Busto Arsizio. The operator's name was subsequently changed to Società Esercizi Aeroportuali SpA [it] (SEA). After assuming full control, SEA decided to develop Malpensa as an international and intercontinental gateway, whereas Milan's other airport, Linate Airport, would be tasked with handling only domestic services.

Between 1958 and 1962 a new terminal arrived at Malpensa and the airport's two parallel runways were extended to 3,915 m (12,844 ft), becoming the longest in Europe at that time. By the early 1960s, however, major European carriers such as British Airways, Air France, Lufthansa and Alitalia had moved the majority of their services to Linate Airport, which was just 11 km east of Milan's city centre, making it much easier for passengers to reach central Milan. This left Malpensa with just a handful of intercontinental links, charter flights and cargo operations. Malpensa suffered a decline in commercial traffic, with passenger numbers dropping from 525,000 in 1960 to just 331,000 by 1965. It was destined to play second fiddle to Linate Airport for another 20 years.

Expansion and development (1995–1998)

This section does not cite any sources. (October 2022)

By the mid-1980s Linate Airport was handling seven million passengers per year and, with only a short single runway and limited parking slots, had reached its saturation point. With no available land nearby for expansion, an alternative solution was sought: Società Esercizi Aeroportuali SpA (SEA) quickly found that developing Malpensa was the only practical alternative.

By the end of 1985, a law had been passed by the Italian Parliament that paved the way for the reorganisation of the Milan airport system. Malpensa was designated as the centre for all services covering northern Italy, while Linate Airport was downgraded to a domestic and short-haul facility. "Malpensa 2000", as the plan was called, included the construction of a new terminal as well as the development of fast, efficient connections to Milan's city centre. The European Union recognised this project as one of the 14 "Essential to the Development of the Union" and provided €200 million to help finance the work. Construction started in November 1990; Malpensa airport was re-opened eight years later.

Alitalia's main hub (1998–2008)

During the night of 24/25 October 1998, Alitalia moved the majority of its fleet from Rome Fiumicino Airport – where it had been flying from for over 50 years – to Malpensa Airport. The airport started a new lease of life as the Italian flag carrier's main hub. Alitalia added up to 488 movements and 42,000 passengers a day at the facility which, by the end of 1998, had handled 5.92 million passengers (an increase of more than two million over the previous year's figure).

In 1999, it recorded a spectacular leap to 16.97 million and, by 2007, passenger numbers had reached 23.9 million. Efficient rail links from two different stations in Milan (Centrale and Cadorna stations) ensured easy access by railway, whereas the nearby A8 motorway had an extra lane added in each direction to help speed up traffic into and out of the city centre.

Before 2001, ground handling services at Malpensa were shared by the SEA (airport's operator) and Trans-World Airlines. Since then, the contracting process has gradually been deregulated. In 2000, airport security services at Malpensa were transferred from the Polizia di Stato (State Police) to SEA's internal division, SEA Airport Security. Up to 2002, SEA was assisted by IVRI in providing security services, but the contract was not renewed after its expiry. Nevertheless, SEA Airport Security is supervised by the Polizia di Stato (Italian State Police), Guardia di Finanza (Italian Military Customs Police) and Ente Nazionale Aviazione Civile (Italy's Civil Aviation Authority), whereas the Carabinieri (Italian Military Police) supervises ramp entrance.^{[citation needed]}

Ramp services are provided by SEA Handling, ATA and, more recently, Aviapartner. SEA Handling provided 80% of the ramp services at Malpensa Airport due to its major customer, Alitalia. In May 2006, however, Italy's Civil Aviation Authority took off the limitation of two ramp handlers.

In 2008, a new development plan was launched by Società Esercizi Aeroportuali SpA (SEA), valued at €1.4 billion, to include a third pier for Terminal 1 and the construction of a third runway. In a surprise move, however, Alitalia announced its decision to revert to Rome Fiumicino Airport as its main hub, due to 'high operating costs' at Malpensa Airport. Alitalia did not pull out of Malpensa altogether and continued to fly several domestic and European services from Milan and two intercontinental flights (to New York–JFK and Tokyo–Narita). However, Malpensa lost around 20% of its daily movements, a decrease from 700 to 550, which resulted in only 19.2 million passengers passing through in 2008. The airport continued to suffer during 2009 when the international financial crisis and higher fuel prices caused a reduction to only 17.6 million passengers that year.

2010s

Responding to Alitalia's pullout, the operator SEA launched an all-out publicity programme and aggressively marketed Malpensa Airport around the world. As a result, from 2008 to 2011, a total of 34 new passenger and cargo routes were added to Malpensa's network.

The low-cost carrier EasyJet made Malpensa its main base after London Gatwick, with more than 20 of its Airbus A319s and Airbus A320s based there. The airline currently flies services from Malpensa to more than 70 destinations in Italy and across Europe.^[9] Competitor Ryanair confirmed plans to open an operating base at Malpensa from December 2015, initially with one aircraft.^[10]

In 2014, a contract was awarded for extension of the railway line from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2. The line was opened in December 2016.^[11] The new Malpensa Terminal 2 railway station is within 200 m north of the T2 arrivals hall, that is accessed by an outdoor covered walkway.^[12]

Terminal 1

Terminal 1, which opened in 1998, is the newer,^[13] larger and more prominent terminal. The terminal is divided into three sections and handles most passengers on scheduled as well as charter flights:

• Concourse A handles domestic and intra-Schengen flights.
• Concourse B handles non-Schengen and intercontinental flights.
• Concourse C (B2), opened in January 2012, handles non-Schengen, intercontinental flights and security-sensitive flights to USA and Israel.

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 is the older terminal.^[13] It was previously used exclusively by easyJet, but has been closed since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[14] It reopened on 31 May 2023. All charter services, which were previously based in this terminal, moved to Terminal 1 upon its opening.

Malpensa Airport additionally provides free shuttles connecting Terminal 2 to Terminal 1.^[15]

Passenger

The following airlines operate regular scheduled, seasonal and charter flights to and from Malpensa:^[16]

Cargo

The following airlines operate regular cargo services to and from Malpensa:

Busiest routes

Busiest domestic routes

More information Rank, Rankvar. (prev. year) ...

Busiest domestic routes to/from Milan Malpensa (2018)^[66]

Rank	Rank var. (prev. year)	Airport	Passengers	% var. (prev. year)	Airline(s)
1		Catania, Sicily	1,048,371	10.24	Air Italy, AlbaStar, Alitalia, easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair
2		Palermo, Sicily	673,401	81.54	Air Italy, Alitalia, easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair
3	2	Lamezia Terme, Calabria	557,529	80.38	Air Italy, Alitalia, easyJet, Ryanair
4	1	Naples, Campania	359,168	29.13	Air Italy, Alitalia, easyJet
5	1	Olbia, Sardinia	324,110	3.16	Air Italy, Alitalia, Blue Panorama Airlines, easyJet, Neos Air
6	new	Rome–Fiumicino, Lazio	242,114	new	Air Italy, Alitalia
7	1	Bari, Apulia	229,529	10.17	Alitalia, easyJet
8	1	Brindisi, Apulia	191,036	6.40	Alitalia, easyJet, Neos Air
9	1	Cagliari, Sardinia	158,621	11.38	Air Italy, Alitalia, easyJet, Neos Air
10	1	Comiso, Sicily	118,181	2.24	Ryanair

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Busiest European routes

More information Rank, Rankvar. (prev. year) ...

Busiest routes between Milan Malpensa and destinations within the European Union (2018)^[66]

Rank	Rank var. (prev. year)	Airport	Passengers	% var. (prev. year)	Airline(s)
1		Paris–Charles de Gaulle, France	911,510	15.41	Air France, Alitalia, easyJet
2	1	Amsterdam, Netherlands	840,160	12.78	Alitalia, easyJet, KLM, Vueling
3	1	Barcelona, Spain	819,077	7.88	easyJet, Vueling
4	1	London–Gatwick, England	577,011	1.35	easyJet
5	1	Madrid, Spain	544,472	9.63	Air Europa, Alitalia, easyJet, Iberia, Ryanair
6	1	Munich, Germany	466,052	12.26	Air Dolomiti, easyJet, Lufthansa
7	1	Lisbon, Portugal	437,438	1.24	Alitalia, easyJet, TAP Portugal
8	2	Frankfurt, Germany	381,004	12.86	Alitalia, Lufthansa
9	2	Vienna, Austria	377,191	25.16	Austrian Airlines, Wizz Air
10	1	Copenhagen, Denmark	362,846	1.63	Alitalia, easyJet, Scandinavian Airlines
11	3	Brussels, Belgium	337,104	8.21	Alitalia, Brussels Airlines, Ryanair
12		Prague, Czech Republic	304,128	2.76	Alitalia, Czech Airlines, easyJet
13		Athens, Thessaloniki, Greece	274,995	0.10	Aegean Airlines, Alitalia, easyJet
14		London–Heathrow, England	248,369	1.40	Alitalia, British Airways
15	2	Budapest, Hungary	239,457	7.32	Wizz Air
16	2	Düsseldorf, Germany	235,165	23.75	Alitalia, Eurowings
17	2	Ibiza, Spain	225,132	0.69	Alitalia, easyJet, Iberia, Neos Air, Vueling
18	2	London–Stansted, England	217,971	2.37	Ryanair
19	5	Paris–Orly, France	206,011	27.61	Aigle Azur, Alitalia, easyJet, Vueling
20		Helsinki, Finland	195,876	7.24	Finnair
21	2	Berlin–Schönefeld, Germany	183,298	1.19	easyJet
22	16	Oporto, Portugal	177,852	115.74	Ryanair, TAP Portugal
23		London–Luton, England	170,303	2.84	easyJet
24	1	Edinburgh, Scotland	165,084	4.69	Alitalia, easyJet
25	2	Málaga, Spain	159,629	3.13	easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair
26	4	Manchester, England	152,858	11.26	easyJet, Flybe
27	1	Stuttgart, Germany	151,790	2.51	easyJet, Eurowings
28	new	Berlin–Tegel, Germany	149,610	new	easyJet, Ryanair
29	1	Luxembourg, Luxembourg	147,866	2.72	easyJet, Luxair
30	1	Warsaw, Poland	137,333	3.99	LOT Polish Airlines
31		Palma de Mallorca, Spain	129,491	13.10	Alitalia, easyJet, Neos Air
32	11	Hamburg, Germany	129,223	25.67	Eurowings
33		Valencia, Spain	128,252	new	Ryanair
34	4	Sofia, Bulgaria	113,709	8.28	Bulgaria Air, Ryanair
35	3	Bucharest, Romania	112,400	1.56	Blue Air, Ryanair
36	2	Stockholm–Arlanda, Sweden	109,095	5.88	easyJet, Neos Air, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Scandinavian Airlines
37	2	Mykonos, Greece	99,491	2.37	easyJet, Neos
38	5	Cologne, Germany	94,148	12.97	Eurowings
39	new	Alicante, Spain	93,742	new	easyJet, Ryanair, Vueling
40	4	Menorca, Spain	85,662	2.22	easyJet, Neos
41		Bordeaux, France	79,224	9.87	easyJet
42	2	Tenerife, Spain	77,708	2.64	easyJet, Neos, Ryanair
43	1	Dublin, Ireland	71,749	14.54	Aer Lingus
44	5	Nantes, France	71,259	11.82	easyJet
45	new	Vilnius, Lithuania	67,869		Wizz Air
46	3	Riga, Latvia	67,589	7.85	airBaltic
47	2	Heraklion, Greece	61,370	5.31	Blue Panorama Airlines, easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair
48	11	Birmingham, England	59,974	29.69	Flybe
49	3	Seville, Spain	54,643	0.19	Ryanair
50	2	Toulouse, France	54,436	1.12	easyJet
51	4	Lyon, France	53,475	1.13	HOP!
52	2	Lanzarote, Spain	52,420	1.03	easyJet, Neos Air

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Busiest international routes

More information Rank, Rankvar. (prev. year) ...

Busiest routes between Milan Malpensa and destinations outside the European Union (2018)^[66]

Rank	Rank var. (prev. year)	City	Passengers	% var. (prev. year)	Airline(s)
1		New York–JFK, New York, United States	791,985	15.30	Air Italy, Alitalia, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Emirates
2		Dubai-International, United Arab Emirates	681,844	3.18	Emirates
3		Istanbul–Atatürk, Turkey	416,778	6.30	Turkish Airlines
4		Moscow–Sheremetyevo, Russia	398,790	6.78	Aeroflot
5		Doha, Qatar	359,792	14.19	Qatar Airways
6	1	Tirana, Albania	283,107	6.06	Blue Panorama Airlines, Ernest Airlines
7	1	Tel Aviv, Israel	275,348	0.89	Alitalia, easyJet, El Al, Neos Air
8	1	Zurich, Switzerland	229,597	5.95	Swiss International Air Lines
9	1	Cairo, Egypt	215,614	4.03	Air Italy, Egypt Air
10	1	Hong Kong, SAR	176,538	0.38	Cathay Pacific
11	6	Miami, Florida, United States	176,283	36.95	Air Italy, American Airlines
12	1	Muscat, Oman	164,120	8.39	Oman Air
13	1	Shanghai-Pudong, China	148,389	3.64	Air China
14	2	São Paulo-Guarulhos, Brazil	147,770	7.22	LATAM Brasil
15	9	Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, Thailand	145,414	46.34	Air Italy, Thai Airways International
16		Newark, New Jersey, United States	145,394	10.31	United Airlines
17	9	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	143,445	34.96	Etihad Airways
18	3	Casablanca, Morocco	133,982	0.94	Jetairfly, Royal Air Maroc
19	1	Tokyo-Narita, Japan	130,477	1.84	Alitalia
20	2	Beijing-Capital, China	124,394	20.47	Air China
21	2	Oslo, Norway	118,130	2.72	Norwegian Air Shuttle, Scandinavian Airlines
22	1	Kyiv, Ukraine	116,101	7.75	Ukraine International Airlines
23	3	Tunis, Tunisia	113,614	2.29	Tunisair
24	1	Singapore, Singapore	112,287	11.23	Singapore Airlines
25	new	Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt	108,124	new	Air Cairo, Air Italy, Neos Air
26		Saint Petersburg, Russia	103,460	16.46	Rossiya Airlines
27	8	Marsa Alam, Egypt	102,956	79.19	Air Cairo, Neos Air
28	3	Havana, Cuba	92,704	5.36	Blue Panorama Airlines, Neos
29	2	Delhi, India	92,583	11.36	Air India, Air Italy
30	2	Marrakesh, Morocco	88,805	7.17	easyJet
31	2	Toronto–Pearson, Canada	75,347	25.90	Air Canada, Air Italy
32	3	Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, Turkey	69,684	0.88	Turkish Airlines
33	3	Seoul-Incheon, South Korea	68,056	1.89	Korean Air
34	3	Belgrade, Serbia	65,439	1.81	Air Serbia
35	3	Tehran, Iran	62,207	0.24	Iran Air, Mahan Air
36	new	Moscow–Domodedovo, Russia	61,429	new	Air Italy
37	new	Moscow–Vnukovo, Russia	60,114	new	Utair
38	new	Addis Ababa, Ethiopia	56,481	new	Ethiopian Airlines
39	new	La Romana, Dominican Republic	53,448	new	Neos Air
40	new	Zanzibar, Tanzania	52,810	new	Blue Panorama Airlines, Neos Air
41	new	Dakar, Senegal	51,104	new	Air Italy

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Movements by country

More information Rank, Rank var. (prev. year) ...

European Union countries with passenger movements
from/to Milan Malpensa Airport (2018)

Rank	Rank var. (prev. year)	Country	Passengers 2018
1		Italy	4,093,221
2		Spain	2,559,852
3	1	Germany	1,805,491
4	1	UK	1,717,631
5		France	1,396,510
6		Netherlands	841,773
7		Greece	652,323
8		Portugal	644,147
9	2	Austria	377,548
10		Denmark	367,156
11	2	Belgium	337,648
12		Czech Republic	304,878
13		Hungary	240,128
14	1	Poland	232,147
15	1	Finland	198,838
16		Luxembourg	147,866
17		Romania	119,021
18		Bulgaria	114,080
19		Sweden	109,465
20	1	Lithuania	75,768
21	1	Ireland	71,749
22	1	Estonia	36,937
23	1	Cyprus	34,714
24		Malta	10,198

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General statistics

More information Years, Movements ...

Years	Movements	% variation	Passengers	% variation	Cargo (tons)	% variation
2000	249,107	13.3	20,716,815	22.1	301,045	4.6
2001	236,409	5.1	18,570,494	10.4	323,707	7.5
2002	214,886	9.1	17,441,250	6.1	328,241	1.4
2003	213,554	0.6	17,621,585	1	362,587	10.5
2004	218,048	2.1	18,554,874	5.3	361,237	13.1
2005	227,718	4.4	19,630,514	5.8	384,752	6.5
2006	247,456	8.7	21,767,267	10.9	419,128	8,9
2007	267,941	8.3	23,885,391	9.7	486,666	16.1
2008	218,476	18.5	19,221,632	19.5	415,952	14.5
2009	187,551	14.2	17,551,635	8.7	344,047	17.3
2010	193,771	3.3	18,947,808	8	432,674	25.8
2011	190,838	1.5	19,303,131	1.8	450,446	4.1
2012	174,892	8.4	18,537,301	4	414,317	8
2013	164,745	5.8	17,955,075	3.1	430,343	3.9
2014	166,749	1.2	18,853,203	5	469,657	9.1
2015	160,484	3.8	18,582,043	1.4	511,191	8.8
2016	166,842	4	19,420,690	4.5	548,767	7.4
2017	178,953	7.3	22,169,167	14.2	589,719	7.5
2018	194,515	8.7	24,725,490	11.5	572,774.8	2.9
2019	234,054	20.3	28,846,299	16.7	558,481.5	2.5
2020	92,432	60.5	7,241,766	74.9	516,739.6	7.5

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Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.

Annual passenger traffic at MXP airport. See Wikidata query.

Rail

The airport is served by two train stations, one in each terminal.

Bus

• Malpensa Shuttle and Malpensa Bus Express connect the airport to Milan Central station (Trenitalia's National Railway hub) and for Milan's Metro network. The shuttle bus calls at Terminals 1 and 2, Busto Arsizio and Milan Fair (on request). Journey time is 60–70 minutes.
• A free, 24-hour shuttle bus provides access to Terminal 2 from Terminal 1. The bus leaves every 7 minutes. Journey time is 15–20 minutes.
• Malpensa Airport has a direct coach connection with Milan's Linate Airport.
• From March 2018 both Terminals are connected to major cities in Northern Italy. This service is provided by BusItalia Fast (a society participated by Trenitalia and the Italian Rail Co.) and connects the airport with Aosta (Aosta Valley), Novara, Santhià, Turin (Piedmont), Sanremo, Savona, Ventimiglia (Liguria) once a day; Padua, Venice Marco Polo Airport, Verona (Veneto), Trieste (Friuli Venezia Giulia) twice a day; Genoa (Liguria) three times a day.^[70]

Road

Malpensa Airport is accessible by a four-lane motorway to the A8 (connecting Switzerland to Milan) and by a five-lane motorway to the A4 (connecting Turin/Torino, Verona, Venice and Triest/Trieste). Local access to the airport is provided by the State Road SS336 from Busto Arsizio and by the State Road SS336dir from Magenta.