Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos (IATA: ATH, ICAO: LGAV), commonly initialised as AIA, is the largest international airport in Greece, serving the city of Athens and region of Attica. It began operation on 28 March 2001 (in time for the 2004 Summer Olympics) and is the main base of Aegean Airlines, as well as other smaller Greek airlines. It replaced the old Ellinikon International Airport.

Athens International Airport is currently a member of Group 1 of Airports Council International (over 25 million passengers). As of 2023, it is the 18th-busiest airport in Europe and the second busiest and second largest in the Balkans, after Istanbul Airport.

The new Athens International Airport covers an expanse of 16,000 acres (25.0 sq mi; 64.7 km), making the facility among the largest in Europe and in the world in terms of land area.

AIA is located between the towns of Markopoulo, Koropi, Spata and Loutsa, about 20 km (12 mi) to the east of central Athens (30 km (19 mi) by road, due to intervening hills). The airport is named after Elefthérios Venizélos, the prominent Cretan political figure and Prime Minister of Greece, who made a significant contribution to the development of Greek aviation and the Hellenic Air Force in the 1930s. As to-date, the airport is operated by AIA S.A. and ownership is divided between the Hellenic Republic (Greek State) and Private Sector in a 55%-45% stake following a PPP scheme for the airport company. Currently, private investors include the Copelouzos Group (5%) and PSP Investments of Canada (40%), following purchase of Hochtief's shares.

The airport was constructed to replace the now-closed Athens (Ellinikon) International Airport, as the latter had reached its saturation point with no physical space for further growth. Studies for a new airport had been carried out from as early as the 1970s, with as many as 19 different locations being looked at before an area close to the town of Spata was chosen as suitable. Athens Airport SA, a state-owned company, was established in 1978 to proceed with the plans. However, after delays and slow development, the project was revived in 1991, approximately 1 year after the city lost the right to host the 1996 Summer Olympics to Atlanta, USA and the possibility of submitting a bid for the 2000 Game was discussed. However, the city presented the project that was eventually the winner for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, with the then government launching an international tender for the selection of a build-own-operate-transfer partner for the airport project, with Hochtief of Germany being selected.

In 1996, Athens International Airport S.A. (AIA) was established as a Public–private partnership with a 30-year concession agreement. That same year, the €2.1 billion development finally began with an estimated completion date of February 2001. The airport construction was completed five months before schedule, but was delayed opening a month due to surface connections to Attiki Odos not being completed. The airport officially opened on 28 March 2001 Its major features include two parallel runways being 4 km (2.5 mi) and 3.8 km (2.4 mi) long respectively. The airport has received approval from the European Aviation Safety Agency and the Federal Aviation Administration for take-offs and landings of the biggest passenger jet worldwide, the A380. The first ever A380 to visit 'Eleftherios Venizelos' Athens International Airport made an emergency landing on 13 April 2011 for emergency medical reasons. The first scheduled A380 flight took place on 26 October 2012 by Emirates.

The Greek government-debt crisis reduced the overall passenger traffic of the airport for six consecutive years. Many long-haul airlines outright terminated service to the airport, while others chose to operate on a seasonal basis only, opting to terminate service during the winter months. Moreover, these problems were further exacerbated by the closure of Olympic Airlines, which operated many long-haul flights to and from the airport. In 2013, the airport handled just above 12.5 million passengers, 3.2% fewer than in 2012 and lower by approximately 25% when compared to 2007's traffic, which was the all-time-high at that time.

2014 signaled a strong recovery for the airport's passenger traffic and all statistical figures. More than ten new airlines started new flights to and from Athens. Aegean Airlines strengthened its network by 30% (with many more destinations scheduled for 2015) while Ryanair established a new base in the Athens Airport and added eight destinations. The airport company recorded an increase in passenger traffic in excess of 21% during 2014, reaching 15.1 million passengers, resulted both by new destinations but also by increased capacity offered on established ones. Characteristically, Singapore and Gulf Air resumed flights while Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways fly more frequently to/from Athens. Delta Air Line resumed their weekly flights and American Airlines retained their seasonal schedules to/from USA with even more frequent connectivity. From 2017 onwards, year-round services to Singapore were scheduled to resume after more than five years, with flights operated by Scoot.

According to AIA published statistics, total traffic for 2015 achieved an impressive performance reaching almost 18.1 million passengers, an all-time-record for the airport at that time, increased by 19% on year-over-year basis and by 1.55 million (+9.4%) the previous best, which was the pre-crisis year 2007. In addition, over the same period, aircraft traffic exhibited a solid growth of 14% year-over-year. Moreover, in 2015 a significant rise (+38%) was recorded by transfer passengers, with the international to international transfer traffic marking an impressive increase (+60%) demonstrating the significant enhancement of the Athens airport connectivity.

2016 was a landmark year for the Athens International Airport, both for domestic and international destinations. Annual results reflected a solid performance for a third year in a row fueled by double-digit growth, this time passing the twenty million mark, increased by 10.7% on year-over-year basis. Healthy growth continued in 2017 with the airport showing traffic increase of 8.6% to a total of 21.7 million passengers, yet another all-time record for the Athens airport. During 2018, the airport achieved yet another record high, reporting increased passenger traffic by 11% to more than 24.1 million passengers. Equally, aircraft traffic achieved a new record with a reported annual growth of 10.8% to 217,094 movements.

For the first ten months of 2023, the airport traffic shows signs of further increase with passenger numbers up by 19.5% to 24.4 million passengers and aircraft movements up by 15.2%. By the end of 2023, Athens saw about 28.17 million international and domestic passengers. This is a 10.2% increase from 2019.

In the second half of June 2018 Emirates added an extra daily flight from its base in Dubai Airport using the Airbus A380 superjumbo, marking the first time the "superjumbo" operated at the airport with a scheduled flight for a long period of time. The A380 service was continued until the end of August 2018.

The airport currently has two terminals, the main terminal and the satellite terminal accessible by an underground link from the main terminal. It is designed to be extended in a modular approach over the ensuing years in order to accommodate increases in air travel. These extensions are planned in a six-phase framework. The first (and current) phase allowed the airport to accommodate 26 million passengers per year. When the airport originally opened, the current phase called for a capacity of only 16 million passengers per year; however, the capacity was able to increase without progressing to the next phase thanks to advanced IT logistics. The sixth and final expansion phase will allow the airport to accommodate an annual traffic of 50 million passengers, with the current layout leaving enough space for five more terminals to be added. As such, the parallel runway system currently in place has been designed to accommodate flight traffic with this high equivalent annual passenger load upon completion of the final expansion phase.

The main terminal building handles all intra-Schengen flights, as well as several non-Schengen flights. All of the airport's 144 check-in desks are located in the Main Terminal and it has three separate levels, one for arrivals, one for departures and a food court level complete with a view of the eastern runway. Finally, the terminal is equipped with fourteen jet bridges and eleven belt conveyors for luggage.

• Hall A is used for flights to Non-schengen countries and Non-European countries.
• Hall B handles flights to Intra-schengen countries as well as domestic services.

In March 2018, the Athens International Airport issued a tender for its first physical expansion, concerning the south wings of the main terminal. The tender called for a building expansion with a total area of approximately 14,950 square meters over five levels (levels 0 to 4). The construction company to build the expansion was awarded in summer 2018, and the project was scheduled to be completed by mid-2019. It was to add 18 more counter check-in decks as well as additional space for arrivals, departures, security and an automated control gate. It also planned to add an expanded shopping area and new lounges by mid-2020.

The satellite terminal has two levels, one for arrivals and the other for departures. It is easily accessible through an underground link complete with moving walkways. The terminal is equipped with ten jet bridges and is capable of handling annual traffic of six million passengers.

In recent years its parking stands were utilized for long-term storage of airliners, specifically two ex-Olympic Airways Airbus A340-300s (both aircraft were transferred to its new owner in February 2017) and a Boeing 767-300ER of defunct Greek start-up carrier SkyGreece Airlines. However, as of June 2017, the parking space of the satellite terminal is in full use for both Schengen and non-Schengen area flights and to accommodate increased traffic. From June 2017 some low-cost carriers were using it. On 24 May 2018, the Satellite Terminal officially restarted full operations. The airlines using it are Ryanair, Easyjet, Vueling, Eurowings, Norwegian, Transavia and Transavia France, TUIfly Belgium, Brussels Airlines, Aer Lingus, Air Transat and Scoot.

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Athens Airport:

Airlines	Destinations
Aegean Airlines	Abu Dhabi, Alexandroupoli, Amman–Queen Alia, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Beirut (suspended), Belgrade, Berlin, Bologna, Brussels, Bucharest–Otopeni, Budapest, Cairo, Chania, Chios, Chișinău, Copenhagen, Corfu, Dubai–International, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Edinburgh, Eindhoven, Florence, Frankfurt, Geneva, Gran Canaria (begins 13 February 2025), Hamburg, Helsinki, Heraklion, Ioannina, Istanbul, İzmir, Jeddah, Kavala, Kefalonia, Kos, Kraków, Larnaca, Lemnos, Lisbon, London–Heathrow, Luxembourg, Madrid, Malta, Manchester, Marrakesh, Milan–Malpensa, Munich, Mykonos, Mytilene, Naples, Nice, Oslo, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Prague, Rhodes, Riyadh, Rome–Fiumicino, Samos, Santorini, Skopje, Sofia, Stockholm–Arlanda, Strasbourg, Stuttgart, Tbilisi, Tel Aviv (suspended until 2 December 2024), Thessaloniki, Tirana, Tunis, Venice, Vienna, Warsaw–Chopin, Yerevan, Zagreb, Zurich Seasonal: Alexandria, Basel/Mulhouse, Bilbao, Bordeaux, Bristol, Catania, Cologne/Bonn, Dubrovnik, Hannover, Ibiza, Innsbruck, Kalamata, Lille, Ljubljana, London–Gatwick, Lyon, Málaga, Marseille, Nantes, Newcastle upon Tyne, Nuremberg, Olbia, Palermo, Podgorica, Porto, Palma de Mallorca, Pisa, Riga, Sarajevo, Seville, Skiathos, Split, Tallinn, Toulouse, Valencia, Vilnius
Aer Lingus	Dublin
Air Arabia	Sharjah
airBaltic	Riga
Air Canada	Seasonal: Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson
Air China	Beijing–Capital
Air Europa	Seasonal: Madrid
Air France	Paris–Charles de Gaulle Seasonal: Marseille, Nice, Toulouse
Air Mediterranean	Seasonal charter: Benghazi, Damascus
Air Serbia	Belgrade Seasonal: Niš
Air Transat	Seasonal: Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson
American Airlines	Seasonal: Charlotte (begins 5 June 2025), Chicago–O'Hare, New York–JFK, Philadelphia
arkia	Tel Aviv
Asiana Airlines	Seasonal charter: Seoul–Incheon
Austrian Airlines	Vienna
Bluebird Airways	Tel Aviv
British Airways	London–Heathrow
Brussels Airlines	Brussels
Bulgaria Air	Sofia
Croatia Airlines	Seasonal: Dubrovnik, Split, Zagreb
Cyprus Airways	Larnaca
Delta Air Lines	Seasonal: Atlanta, Boston, New York–JFK
easyJet	Basel/Mulhouse, Bordeaux, Geneva, Lisbon, London–Gatwick, Lyon, Manchester, Milan–Malpensa, Naples, Venice Seasonal: Bristol, Edinburgh, London–Luton, Málaga, Nice, Palma de Mallorca, Paris–Orly
Egyptair	Cairo
El Al	Tel Aviv
Emirates	Dubai–International, Newark
Ethiopian Airlines	Addis Ababa
Etihad Airways	Abu Dhabi
Eurowings	Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Prague, Stuttgart
GoTo Fly	Forlì
Gulf Air	Bahrain, Larnaca
Iberia	Madrid
Israir Airlines	Tel Aviv
ITA Airways	Rome–Fiumicino
Jet2.com	Birmingham, London–Stansted, Manchester
Juneyao Air	Shanghai–Pudong
KLM	Amsterdam
Korean Air	Seasonal charter: Seoul–Incheon
Kuwait Airways	Kuwait City
LOT Polish Airlines	Warsaw–Chopin
Lufthansa	Frankfurt, Munich
Middle East Airlines	Beirut
Norse Atlantic Airways	Seasonal: New York–JFK
Norwegian Air Shuttle	Seasonal: Copenhagen, Helsinki, Oslo, Stockholm–Arlanda
Olympic Air	Ikaria, Karpathos, Kythira, Leros, Milos, Naxos, Paros, Sitia, Skiathos, Skyros, Zakynthos
Pegasus Airlines	Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen
Play	Seasonal: Reykjavík–Keflavík
Qatar Airways	Doha
Royal Jordanian	Amman–Queen Alia
Ryanair	Bari, Bergamo, Bologna, Budapest, Charleroi, Dublin, Katowice, Lemnos (begins 1 May 2025), London–Stansted, Malta, Milan–Malpensa, Paphos, Rome–Fiumicino, Vienna Seasonal: Berlin, Catania, Chania, Cologne/Bonn, Corfu, Kraków, London–Luton, Santorini, Tel Aviv, Vilnius, Warsaw–Modlin, Wrocław
Saudia	Seasonal: Jeddah, Riyadh
Scandinavian Airlines	Copenhagen, Stockholm–Arlanda Seasonal: Gothenburg, Oslo
Scoot	Berlin, Singapore
Sky Express	Alexandroupoli, Amsterdam, Astypalaia, Brussels, Chania, Chios, Corfu, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Heraklion, Ikaria, Istanbul, Kalymnos, Karpathos, Kastoria, Kefalonia, Kithira, Kos, Kozani, Larnaca, Lemnos, London–Gatwick, Milan–Malpensa, Milos, Munich, Mykonos, Mytilene, Naxos, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Paros, Prague (begins 2 December 2024), Rhodes, Rome–Fiumicino, Samos, Santorini, Skiathos, Sofia, Syros, Tbilisi, Thessaloniki, Tirana, Vienna (begins 3 December 2024), Warsaw–Chopin, Yerevan, Zakynthos
Smartwings	Seasonal: Prague
Swiss International Air Lines	Geneva, Zurich
TAROM	Bucharest–Otopeni
Transavia	Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Marseille (begins 3 April 2025), Paris–Orly Seasonal: Lyon, Montpellier, Nantes
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul
United Airlines	Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare, Newark, Washington–Dulles
Universal Air	Malta
Volotea	Bordeaux, Heraklion, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Naples, Santorini, Venice Seasonal: Ancona, Bari, Bilbao, Brest, Cagliari, Dubrovnik, Lille, Mykonos, Palermo, Split, Strasbourg, Toulouse, Verona
Vueling	Barcelona
Wizz Air	Abu Dhabi, Bucharest–Otopeni, Budapest, Katowice, Kutaisi, Larnaca, London–Gatwick, London–Luton, Milan–Malpensa, Tel Aviv, Tirana
World2Fly	Seasonal charter: Madrid (begins 13 June 2025)

Athens International Airport is the largest and busiest airport in Greece. By the end of 2023, it was the 18th-busiest airport in Europe.

Passenger, aircraft movement and cargo statistics at "El. Venizelos" airport: 2002–2023

Year	Passenger traffic	Passenger % change	Cargo handled (kg.)	Cargo % change	Aircraft movements	Aircraft % change
2002	11,827,448	n/a	106,813,249	n/a	159,467	n/a
2003	12,252,394	3.6	109,741,122	2.7	170,129	6.7
2004	13,662,332	11.5	118,999,247	8.4	191,048	12.3
2005	14,281,020	4.5	115,942,974	2.6	180,936	5.3
2006	15,079,708	5.6	120,174,745	3.6	190,872	5.6
2007	16,538,403	9.7	118,972,376	1.0	205,295	7.6
2008	16,466,491	0.4	122,195,965	2.7	199,418	2.9
2009	16,225,589	1.5	104,520,932	10.5	210,147	5.4
2010	15,411,099	5.0	96,676,103	7.5	191,766	8.7
2011	14,446,971	6.3	85,831,845	11.2	173,296	9.6
2012	12,944,041	10.4	76,424,557	11.0	153,295	11.5
2013	12,536,057	3.2	74,874,633	2.0	140,448	8.4
2014	15,196,369	21.2	77,337,956	3.3	154,530	10.0
2015	18,087,377	19.0	80,475,761	4.0	176,156	14.0
2016	20,016,998	10.7	88,477,196	9.9	189,137	7.4
2017	21,737,787	8.6	90,176,471	1.9	195,951	3.6
2018	24,135,736	11.0	92,573,026	3.1	217,094	10.8
2019	25,573,993	6.0	94,621,875	1.5	225,628	3.9
2020	8,078,394	68.4	75,783,363	19.4	112,415	50.2
2021	12,345,786	52.8	96,907,000	27.9	158,950	41.4
2022	22,728,750	84.1	106,103,811	6.8	213,352	34.2
2023	28,174,150	24.0	94,000,348	7.4	241,604	13.2
2024(Oct)	27,573,007	12.9	--	n/a	231,859	11.0

The table below shows passenger totals at Athens International Airport by country destination during 2023, and changes compared to 2022.

Passenger traffic per country destination (2023)

Rank	Country destination	Passengers	Change %
GR	Domestic	8,783,146	18.9
1	Germany	1,874,693	16.2
2	Italy	1,867,628	33.0
3	United Kingdom	1,858,384	24.2
4	France	1,393,015	12.1
5	Cyprus	1,236,156	18.6
6	United States	976,394	9.8
7	Turkey	925,468	27.4
8	Spain	889,463	43.0
9	Israel	777,364	31.1
10	Switzerland	758,325	15.2

Top airlines at Athens

Rank	Airline	Market share
1	Aegean Airlines	45.8%
	Olympic Air
2	Sky Express	12.0%
3	Ryanair	5.1%
4	Lufthansa	2.7%
5	Volotea	2.1%
6	Emirates	1.7%
7	Turkish Airlines	1.6%
8	Swiss	1.5%
9	Wizz Air	1.5%
10	Delta Air Lines	1.4%

Top airlines alliances at Athens

Rank	Airline alliance	Market Share
1	Star Alliance	52.1%
2	SkyTeam	5.0%
3	Oneworld	3.8%
4	Non-allied carriers	39.1%

Busiest European destinations from Athens Airport

Rank	Destination	Airport(s)	Passengers	Top carriers
1	London	LHR, LGW, STN	1,545,653	Aegean Airlines, British Airways, easyJet, Jet2.com, Ryanair, Sky Express, Wizz Air
2	Larnaca	LCA	1,199,672	Aegean Airlines, Cyprus Airways, Gulf Air, Sky Express, Wizz Air
3	Paris	CDG, ORY	999,542	Aegean Airlines, Air France, easyJet, Sky Express, Transavia France
4	Istanbul	IST, SAW	886,934	Aegean Airlines, Pegasus Airlines, Turkish Airlines
5	Rome	FCO, CIA	745,773	Aegean Airlines, ITA Airways, Ryanair, Sky Express
6	Munich	MUC	667,849	Aegean Airlines, Lufthansa, Sky Express
7	Milan	MXP, BGY	646,373	Aegean Airlines, easyJet, Ryanair, Sky Express, Wizz Air
8	Frankfurt	FRA	532,952	Aegean Airlines, Lufthansa, Sky Express
9	Amsterdam	AMS	508,294	Aegean Airlines, KLM, Transavia
10	Zürich	ZRH	483,325	Aegean Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines

Busiest intercontinental destinations from Athens Airport

Rank	Destination	Airport(s)	Passengers	Carriers
1	Tel Aviv	TLV	767,327	Aegean Airlines, Arkia, Bluebird Airways, El Al, Israir, Ryanair, Tus Airways, Wizz Air
2	New York	JFK, EWR	606,594	American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, United Airlines
3	Cairo	CAI	346,362	Aegean Airlines, EgyptAir
4	Doha	DOH	264,378	Qatar Airways
5	Dubai	DXB	258,999	Emirates
6	Toronto	YYZ	200,407	Air Canada, Air Transat
7	Montreal	YUL	185,344	Air Canada, Air Transat
8	Beirut	BEY	146,351	Aegean Airlines, Middle East Airlines
9	Abu Dhabi	AUH	143,215	Etihad Airways, Wizz Air
10	Atlanta	ATL	139,373	Delta Air Lines

Busiest domestic destinations from Athens Airport

Rank	Destination	Airport	Passengers	Carriers
1	Thessaloniki	SKG	1,475,010	Aegean Airlines, Sky Express
2	Heraklion	HER	1,227,137	Aegean Airlines, Sky Express, Volotea
3	Santorini	JTR	1,215,699	Aegean Airlines, Ryanair, Sky Express, Volotea
4	Chania	CHQ	712,940	Aegean Airlines, Ryanair, Sky Express
5	Rhodes	RHO	689,047	Aegean Airlines, Sky Express
6	Mykonos	JMK	503,107	Aegean Airlines, Sky Express, Volotea
7	Corfu	CFU	353,911	Aegean Airlines, Ryanair, Sky Express
8	Mytilene	MJT	306,685	Aegean Airlines, Sky Express
9	Paros	PAS	305,342	Olympic Air, Sky Express
10	Kos	KGS	272,676	Aegean Airlines, Sky Express

A railway station is immediately adjacent to the airport terminal, accessible by an elevated walkway. Athens Metro line 3 and the suburban railway service Proastiakos run trains to and from this station.

The airport is accessible by the Attiki Odos toll highway from the centre and northern Athens, Varis-Koropiou Avenue from the western part, Laurio Ave. from the South, and Spata-Loutsa Avenue from the East. A variety of parking options are available on site at the airport in three different parking lots. Located at the arrivals level, opposite the airport terminal, the airport offers short-term parking for up to five hours with 1,357 parking spaces available in lots P1 and P2. Long-term parking is located across the airport's main access road (Attiki Odos) with 5,802 parking spaces in lot P3. A free shuttle bus is available to transport passengers, while the lots are also accessible by foot to the terminal. Premium valet service is also offered at the Departures level by Entrance 3.

Taxis are available at the designated taxi waiting area located at exit 3 of the arrivals level. Taxis from Athens International Airport to the city center have a flat rate of 40€ during the day (05:00-23:59) and 55€ at night (00:00-04:59). Limousine service is also available upon request by the inner curbside of the arrivals level between exits 3 and 4.

Four bus lines (X93, X95, X96, X97) connect directly to the Athens greater area, X95 starts from Syntagma square, X93 connects the airport to intercity bus stations (KTEL Kifissos Bus Terminal and Liosion bus terminal), X96 to Athens main port Piraeus and X97 to Elliniko metro station the Southern terminal of Line 2. Buses disembark passengers at the departures level and depart from the arrivals level between exits 4 and 5. Regional bus services by KTEL Express operate to the airport, currently connecting the airport to Rafina, Markopoulo, Lavrio, Kalyvia and Keratea.

• Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air have their head office in Building 57 on the airport property. Olympic Air also has offices in Building 53A.
• The Air Accident Investigation and Aviation Safety Board has an office in Office 1311 in Building 11.

• The Greek fast food company Goody's S.A. has its head office in Building 14B.
• Sofitel Hotel
• Retail Park
• Two robotic systems, named Hercules and Ulysses, are used by the airport for the handling of potentially dangerous materials. They were donated by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

• List of the busiest airports in Greece
• Transport in Greece

• Media related to Athens International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website
• ATHENS AIRPORT "EL.VENIZELOS" International Airport
• Accident history for ATH at Aviation Safety Network
• Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos"