Italy: Rome’s Fiumicino airport to reopen Terminal 1

Rome: Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci airport, better known as Fiumicino, is to reopen its Terminal 1 in “the first half of August”, according to an announcement by Aeroporti di Roma (AdR).

Terminal 1 was first closed on 17 March last year, days after Italy ordered a nationwide lockdown to tackle the covid-19 crisis, with the airport moving all operations to Terminal 3.

AdR says the reopening is part of a “progressive resumption” of air traffic, which has seen a gradual increase this summer, particularly since the introduction of the digital Green Pass.

However AdR says the situation is still “very far from normal” and traffic flows in July equated to only around 30 per cent of pre-covid levels.

Traffic began to increase towards the end of the month, reaching peaks of about 53,000 passengers a day.

The airport says it continues to operate to the strictest covid-19 protocols, with the risks of crowding considered low due to its management of traffic flows, quickly-moving queues and constant monitoring.

In September Fiumicino became the first airport in the world to obtain a 5-Star rating from Skytrax, in recognition of its hygiene and efficiency in response to the coronavirus crisis.

Fiumicino recently made headlines for being rated once again top airport in Europe for passenger satisfaction, and for opening a ‘Vax & Go’ centre, offering travellers covid vaccinations without booking.