Airports in Latin America and the Caribbean have experienced a sustained recovery in passenger traffic after the pandemic; however, this growth has not been reflected in non-aeronautical revenues, so implementing strategies to boost this source of resources is one of the main challenges for the region.
“If we analyze the evolution of non-aeronautical revenues, we observe that the share that existed before the pandemic has not yet been recovered. In Latin America, the situation continues to show a decline compared to 2019. Globally, the share of non-aeronautical revenues has decreased by 9%, while in the region the drop is 8.4% compared to that year,” said Patrick Lucas, executive director of Airport Economic Consulting.
During his participation in the Airport Commercial Forum organized by the Airports Council International (ACI-LAC) , he considered that the recovery of this type of income could be registered between 2026 or 2027.
For his part, Rafael Echevarne, director general of ACI-LAC, indicated that this situation is noteworthy, and therefore it is necessary to implement a strategy to ensure that this increase in passengers translates into more commercial activity.
“This arose as a result of the pandemic, although there were already trends before it. Perhaps passengers are no longer surprised by the commercial offerings, and the need for airports to modernize must be in line with trends and the different types of customers,” he explained.
Patrick Lucas said that in the distribution of these types of resources, retail remains the main source of income, representing around 30% of the total. However, this composition varies considerably between different regions of the world.
For example, in North America, revenues from vehicle parking predominate , whereas in Latin America and the Caribbean, revenues are mainly concentrated in commercial concessions, retail stores, and food and beverage establishments, that is, in activities directly oriented to the passenger.
He mentioned that factors such as macroeconomic and political issues, high aviation fuel prices, high airport fees, weather events, among others, are part of the impacts on this type of income.
He noted that, in 2025, non-aeronautical revenues remained 8.4% below 2019 levels, while passenger revenues were 29.7% below.
Therefore, he said that growth in passenger revenue is required by working on stronger commercial offers, digital interaction and personalized services, in addition to diversification in real estate, mobility, logistics and energy.
“The key point is that aeronautical revenues alone are not enough to sustain the development of an airport; non-aeronautical revenues are a fundamental part of the business model,” he explained.
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