# Milan Malpensa Airport

Milan Malpensa Airport "Silvio Berlusconi" (IATA: MXP, ICAO: LIMC) is an international airport in Ferno, in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It is the largest airport in northern Italy, serving Lombardy, Piedmont, and Liguria, as well as the Swiss canton of Ticino. The airport is located 49 kilometres (30 mi) northwest of Milan, next to the Ticino river dividing Lombardy and Piedmont. The airport is located inside the Parco Naturale Lombardo Della Valle Del Ticino, a nature reserve included by UNESCO in the World Network of Biosphere Reserves. The airport was opened in 1909 by Giovanni Agusta and Gianni Caproni to test their aircraft prototypes, before switching to civil operation in 1948.
Malpensa Airport is ninth in the world and sixth in Europe for the number of countries served with direct flights. In 2024, Malpensa Airport handled 28.5 million passengers and was the 22nd-busiest airport in Europe in terms of passengers and second-busiest airport in Italy in terms of passengers after Rome Fiumicino Airport. It is the busiest airport in Italy for freight and cargo, handling over 730,000 tons of international freight annually (2024).
Together with Milan Bergamo Airport and Milan Linate Airport, it forms the Milan airport system with 56.9 million passengers in 2024, the largest airport system in Italy by number of passengers.

## History
### Early years

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 m (5,900 ft). A small wooden terminal was constructed to protect goods and passengers from bad weather.

### After World War II

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 City 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 is just 11 km (6.8 mi) 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)

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.
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. Competitor Ryanair confirmed plans to open an operating base at Malpensa from December 2015, initially with one aircraft.
In 2014, a contract was awarded for the extension of the railway line from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2. The line was opened in December 2016. The new Malpensa Terminal 2 railway station is 200 m (660 ft) north of the T2 arrivals hall, that is accessed by an outdoor covered walkway.

### 2020s

On 5 July 2024, Italian minister of infrastructure and transport Matteo Salvini announced that Malpensa Airport would officially be named after former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, following ENAC's approval of a request by the regional government of Lombardy from 2023. ENAC officially changed the name to Aeroporto internazionale Milano Malpensa "Silvio Berlusconi" on 11 July 2024.

## Terminals

Malpensa Airport has two passenger terminals and they are connected by free airport shuttle buses and trains.

### Terminal 1

Terminal 1, which opened in 1998, is the newer, 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 the USA and Israel.

### Terminal 2

Terminal 2 is the older terminal. It was closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and reopened on 31 May 2023. easyJet has been the sole tenant of Terminal 2 since all charter services, which were previously based in Terminal 2, moved to Terminal 1 upon the latter's opening.

## Airlines and destinations
### Passenger

The following airlines operate regular scheduled, seasonal and charter flights to and from Malpensa:
| Airlines | Destinations |
| Aegean Airlines | Athens, Thessaloniki |
| Aer Lingus | Seasonal: Dublin |
| Aeroitalia | Rome–Fiumicino |
| Air Albania | Tirana |
| Air Algérie | Algiers |
| Air Cairo | Cairo, Sharm El Sheikh Seasonal: Hurghada, Luxor |
| Air Canada | Montréal–Trudeau |
| Air China | Beijing–Capital, Chengdu–Tianfu, Shanghai–Pudong, Wenzhou |
| Air Corsica | Seasonal: Calvi, Figari |
| Air Dolomiti | Frankfurt, Munich |
| Air Europa | Madrid |
| Air France | Paris–Charles de Gaulle |
| Air Horizont | Seasonal charter: Lampedusa, Olbia, Sharm El Sheikh |
| Air India | Delhi |
| Air Serbia | Belgrade |
| airBaltic | Riga |
| AlbaStar | Seasonal charter: Marsa Alam, Sharm El Sheikh |
| All Nippon Airways | Tokyo–Haneda |
| American Airlines | New York–JFK Seasonal: Philadelphia (begins 23 May 2025) |
| Arkia | Tel Aviv |
| Austrian Airlines | Vienna |
| Azerbaijan Airlines | Baku |
| Azores Airlines | Ponta Delgada |
| BeOnd | Malé |
| British Airways | London–Heathrow |
| Brussels Airlines | Brussels |
| Bulgaria Air | Seasonal: Sofia |
| Cathay Pacific | Hong Kong |
| China Eastern Airlines | Xi'an |
| Condor | Frankfurt (begins 1 May 2025) |
| Croatia Airlines | Seasonal: Split, Zagreb (resumes 2 June 2025) |
| Cyprus Airways | Seasonal: Larnaca |
| Delta Air Lines | Atlanta, New York–JFK Seasonal: Boston (begins 24 May 2025) |
| easyJet | A Coruña, Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Bari, Bilbao, Bordeaux, Brindisi, Bristol, Cagliari, Catania, Düsseldorf (begins 30 March 2025), Edinburgh, Fuerteventura, Giza, Gran Canaria, Hamburg (resumes 30 March 2025), Hurghada, Lamezia Terme, Lanzarote, Larnaca, Lisbon, London–Gatwick, London–Luton, Málaga, Marsa Alam, Manchester, Marrakesh, Munich, Nantes, Naples, Olbia, Palermo, Palma de Mallorca, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Porto, Prague, Rabat, Reykjavík–Keflavík, Salerno, Sharm El Sheikh, Tel Aviv (resumes 5 June 2025), Tenerife–South, Toulouse, Tromsø Seasonal: Biarritz (begins 23 June 2025), Birmingham (ends 12 December 2025), Chania, Copenhagen (ends 14 December 2025), Corfu, Harstad/Narvik (begins 28 June 2025), Heraklion, Ibiza, Kefalonia, Kittilä, Kos, Lampedusa, Luxembourg, Malta, Menorca, Mykonos, Oslo (ends 14 December 2025) Paris–Orly (begins 30 March 2025), Preveza/Lefkada, Pristina (ends 28 March 2025) Rhodes, Santorini, Skiathos, Tbilisi (begins 1 April 2025), Thessaloniki (begins 25 June 2025), Zadar, Zakynthos |
| Egyptair | Cairo Seasonal: Luxor |
| El Al | Tel Aviv |
| Emirates | Dubai–International, New York–JFK |
| Ethiopian Airlines | Addis Ababa, Zurich |
| Etihad Airways | Abu Dhabi |
| EVA Air | Taipei–Taoyuan |
| Eurowings | Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Stuttgart |
| Finnair | Helsinki |
| FlyOne | Chișinău |
| FlyOne Armenia | Yerevan |
| Gulf Air | Bahrain Seasonal: Geneva, Nice |
| Hainan Airlines | Chongqing, Guiyang, Shenzhen |
| Iberia | Madrid |
| Icelandair | Seasonal: Reykjavík–Keflavík |
| Juneyao Air | Zhengzhou |
| KLM | Amsterdam (ends 29 March 2025) |
| Korean Air | Seoul–Incheon |
| Kuwait Airways | Kuwait City |
| La Compagnie | Newark |
| LATAM Brasil | São Paulo–Guarulhos |
| LOT Polish Airlines | Warsaw–Chopin Seasonal: Rzeszów |
| Lufthansa | Frankfurt, Munich |
| Luxair | Luxembourg |
| MedSky Airways | Tripoli (begins 6 April 2025) |
| Middle East Airlines | Beirut |
| Neos | Almaty, Amritsar, Boa Vista, Cairo, Cancún, Dakar–Diass, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Havana, Lagos, La Romana, Luxor, Male, Marsa Alam, Mombasa, Montego Bay, New York–JFK, Nosy Bé, Sal, Sharm El Sheikh, Tel Aviv (resumes 2 April 2025), Tenerife–South, Toronto–Pearson Zanzibar Seasonal: Brindisi, Cagliari, Cartagena, Catania, Chania (resumes 24 May 2025), Comiso, Corfu, Djerba, Enfidha, Hamburg, Heraklion, Ibiza, Karpathos, Kos, Lamezia Terme, Lanzarote, Marsa Matruh, Mauritius, Menorca, Monastir, Mykonos, Nanjing, Olbia, Palermo, Palma de Mallorca, Patras, Phuket, Punta Cana, Rhodes, Rovaniemi, Salalah, Samos, Santorini, Skiathos, Tromsø Seasonal charter: Pointe-à-Pitre |
| Nesma Airlines | Seasonal: Cairo |
| Norwegian Air Shuttle | Oslo |
| Nouvelair | Tunis Seasonal charter: Djerba, Monastir |
| Oman Air | Muscat |
| Qanot Sharq | Tashkent (begin 12 April 2025) |
| Qatar Airways | Doha |
| Royal Air Maroc | Casablanca |
| Royal Jordanian | Amman–Queen Alia |
| Ryanair | Alghero, Alicante, Athens, Barcelona, Bari, Beauvais, Berlin, Bratislava (begins 30 March 2025), Brindisi, Bucharest–Otopeni, Budapest, Cagliari, Catania, Dublin, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Kraków, Lamezia Terme, Lanzarote, London–Stansted, Madrid, Málaga, Malta, Manchester, Marrakesh, Naples, Palermo, Palma de Mallorca, Pescara (begins 30 March 2025), Porto, Reggio Calabria, Rzeszów, Seville, Tallinn, Tenerife–South, Valencia, Vienna Seasonal: Corfu, Funchal (begins 1 April 2025), Gothenburg (begins 3 June 2025), Heraklion, Kos, Santorini, Trapani, Zadar |
| Saudia | Jeddah Seasonal: Medina, Riyadh |
| Scandinavian Airlines | Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm–Arlanda Seasonal: Bergen, Stavanger |
| Singapore Airlines | Barcelona, Singapore |
| Sky Express | Athens |
| SunExpress | Izmir Seasonal: Antalya |
| Swiss International Air Lines | Zurich |
| TAP Air Portugal | Lisbon |
| Thai Airways International | Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi |
| Transavia | Paris–Orly |
| Tunisair | Tunis |
| Turkish Airlines | Istanbul |
| Turkmenistan Airlines | Ashgabat |
| Twin Jet | Lyon, Marseille |
| United Airlines | Newark Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare |
| Uzbekistan Airways | Tashkent |
| Vietnam Airlines | Hanoi (begins 1 July 2025) |
| Vueling | Barcelona, Paris–Orly (ends 29 March 2025) Seasonal: Bilbao, Ibiza |
| Wizz Air | Abu Dhabi (begins 2 June 2025), Barcelona, Beauvais, Bucharest–Otopeni, Budapest, Catania, Chișinău, Gdańsk, Giza (ends 28 March 2025), Jeddah, Kraków, Kutaisi, Larnaca, London–Gatwick, Madrid, Málaga, Marrakesh, Podgorica, Prague (ends 27 April 2025), Pristina, Reykjavik–Keflavík, Rzeszów, Sharm El Sheikh, Skopje, Suceava, Tel Aviv, Tenerife–South, Tirana, Valencia, Vilnius, Warsaw–Chopin, Yerevan Seasonal: Amman–Queen Alia, Athens (resumes 28 October 2025), Corfu, Heraklion, Lampedusa, Olbia, Skiathos, Zakynthos |

### Cargo

The following airlines operate regular cargo services to and from Malpensa:
| Airlines | Destinations |
| Amazon Air | Cagliari, Catania, Leipzig/Halle |
| Asiana Cargo | Almaty, Seoul–Incheon |
| Atlas Air | Amsterdam, Chicago–O'Hare, Liège, San Juan, Seoul–Incheon, Tokyo–Narita |
| Cargolux | Luxembourg |
| Cargolux Italia | Almaty, Baku, Curitiba, Dallas/Fort Worth, Dubai–International, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, Mexico City–AIFA, New York–JFK, Novosibirsk, Osaka–Kansai, San Juan, Vilnius, Zhengzhou |
| Cathay Cargo | Frankfurt, Hong Kong |
| DHL Aviation | Ancona, Athens, Bahrain, Barcelona, Belgrade, Brussels, Bucharest–Otopeni, Budapest, Cincinnati, Cologne/Bonn, East Midlands, Leipzig/Halle, London–Heathrow, London–Luton, London–Stansted, Madrid, Naples, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Pisa, Seoul–Incheon, Thessaloniki, Vitoria, Zagreb |
| Egyptair Cargo | Cairo |
| Emirates SkyCargo | Amsterdam, Dubai–Al Maktoum |
| Ethiopian Airlines Cargo | Addis Ababa |
| Geo-Sky | Charter: Ezhou |
| Hong Kong Air Cargo | Hong Kong |
| Korean Air Cargo | Seoul–Incheon |
| Lufthansa Cargo | Frankfurt |
| MSC Air Cargo | Tokyo–Narita |
| Nippon Cargo Airlines | Amsterdam, Tokyo–Narita |
| Qatar Airways Cargo | Doha, Munich |
| Saudia Cargo | Jeddah, Riyadh |
| Silk Way West Airlines | Baku |
| Turkish Cargo | Istanbul |
| Turkmenistan Airlines | Ashgabat |

## Statistics
### Traffic

Milan Malpensa Airport – traffic information :
| 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 |
| 2021 | 118,341 | 28.0 | 9,622,464 | 32.9 | 747,242 | 44.6 |
| 2022 | 186,626 | 57.7 | 21,347,652 | 121.9 | 721,255 | 3.5 |
| 2023 | 201,958 | 8.2 | 26,076,714 | 22.2 | 671,908 | 6.8 |

### Busiest domestic routes

Busiest domestic routes to/from Milan Malpensa (2023) :
| Rank | Rank var. (prev. year) | Airport | Passengers | Airline(s) |
| 1 | | Catania, Sicily | 1,066,600 | easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair, Wizz Air |
| 2 | | Palermo, Sicily | 809,824 | easyJet, Ryanair |
| 3 | | Naples, Campania | 681,008 | easyJet, Ryanair |
| 4 | | Bari, Apulia | 494,199 | easyJet, Ryanair |
| 5 | | Brindisi, Apulia | 436,195 | easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair |
| 6 | | Olbia, Sardinia | 340,245 | easyJet, Neos Air, Wizz Air |
| 7 | 1 | Lamezia Terme, Calabria | 267,827 | easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair |
| 8 | 1 | Cagliari, Sardinia | 263,010 | easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair |

### Busiest European routes

Busiest European Routes from/to Milan Malpensa (2023) :
| Rank | Rank var. (prev. year) | Airport | Passengers | Airline(s) |
| 1 | | Barcelona, Spain | 996,626 | easyJet, Ryanair, Singapore Airlines, Vueling, Wizz Air |
| 2 | | Paris–Charles de Gaulle, France | 824,257 | Air France, easyJet |
| 3 | | Madrid, Spain | 723,736 | Air Europa, Iberia, Ryanair, Wizz Air |
| 4 | | Lisbon, Portugal | 607,425 | easyJet, TAP Portugal |
| 5 | 2 | Athens, Thessaloniki, Greece | 520,479 | Aegean Airlines, easyJet, Ryanair, Sky Express, Wizz Air |
| 6 | 1 | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 489,345 | easyJet, KLM, |
| 7 | 1 | Vienna, Austria | 382,004 | Austrian Airlines, Ryanair |
| 8 | 1 | Frankfurt, Germany | 334,927 | Air Dolomiti, Lufthansa |
| 9 | 7 | Prague, Czech Republic | 328,857 | Czech Airlines, easyJet, Wizz Air |
| 10 | 1 | Copenhagen, Denmark | 315,126 | easyJet, Scandinavian Airlines |
| 11 | 2 | Málaga, Spain | 262,043 | easyJet, Ryanair |
| 12 | 2 | Paris–Orly, France | 260,554 | Transavia, Vueling |
| 13 | 1 | Munich, Germany | 235,293 | Air Dolomiti, easyJet, Lufthansa |
| 14 | 3 | Porto, Portugal | 232,153 | easyJet, Ryanair, TAP Portugal |
| 15 | 5 | Budapest, Hungary | 222,141 | Ryanair, Wizz Air |
| 16 | 6 | Palma de Mallorca, Spain | 217,238 | easyJet, Neos Air, Ryanair |
| 17 | 2 | Ibiza, Spain | 201,775 | easyJet, Neos Air, Vueling |
| 18 | | Helsinki, Finland | 196,803 | Finnair |
| 19 | 9 | Tenerife, Spain | 195,314 | easyJet, Neos, Ryanair, Wizz Air |

#### Busiest non-EU routes

Busiest non-EU routes from/to Milan Malpensa (2023) :
| Rank | Rank var. (prev. year) | City | Passengers | Airline(s) |
| 1 | | New York–JFK, New York, United States | 981,030 | American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, ITA Airways, Neos Air |
| 2 | | London–Gatwick, England | 691,156 | easyJet, Wizz Air |
| 3 | | Dubai–International, United Arab Emirates | 558,974 | Emirates |
| 4 | | Istanbul, Turkey | 520,763 | Turkish Airlines |
| 5 | 2 | Doha, Qatar | 486,648 | Qatar Airways |
| 6 | 1 | Tirana, Albania | 390,687 | Air Albania, Wizz Air |
| 7 | 1 | Tel Aviv, Israel | 360,694 | Arkia, easyJet, El Al, Neos Air, Wizz Air |
| 8 | 2 | London–Stansted, England | 354,963 | Ryanair |
| 9 | | London–Heathrow, England | 315,813 | British Airways |
| 10 | 1 | Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt | 284,264 | Air Horizont, AlbaStar, easyJet, Neos Air, Wizz Air |
| 11 | 1 | Manchester, England | 260,934 | easyJet, Ryanair |
| 12 | | Cairo, Egypt | 247,835 | Air Cairo, Egypt Air, Neos Air |
| 13 | 4 | Marrakesh, Morocco | 195,444 | easyJet, Ryanair, Wizz Air |
| 14 | 1 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | 195,186 | Etihad Airways |
| 15 | 1 | Newark, New Jersey, United States | 194,795 | La Compagnie, United Airlines |
| 16 | 6 | Marsa Alam, Egypt | 186,419 | Air Cairo, AlbaStar, easyJet, Neos Air |
| 17 | 2 | São Paulo-Guarulhos, Brazil | 161,249 | LATAM Brasil |
| 18 | 3 | Reykjavík, Iceland | 158,512 | easyJet, Icelandair, Wizz Air |
| 19 | 13 | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia | 147,815 | Saudia, Wizz Air |
| 20 | 1 | Oslo, Norway | 144,999 | easyJet, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Scandinavian Airlines |
| 21 | 3 | Casablanca, Morocco | 134,521 | Royal Air Maroc |

### Movements by country

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 |

## Transport links
### Rail

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

#### Malpensa Express

Malpensa Express is a direct train connection between Terminal 2, Terminal 1 and Milan's city centre.
As of 2019, its service is based on a clock-face timetable with four services per hour in both directions: two run between the two airport terminals and Milan Cadorna station; the other two between the two airport terminals, Milan Garibaldi and Milan Centrale stations. All services call at Busto Arsizio Nord, Saronno (connections for Como, Novara and Varese) and Milan Bovisa stations.
The journey time ranges between 30 and 50 minutes, depending on the type of service and the number of stops.

#### Other train services

TiLo operates services to Bellinzona in Switzerland.
Milan's Suburban Line S10 (Milano Rogoredo–Milano Bovisa) ran to Malpensa Airport/Aeroporto from June 2010. Trains called at: Ferno, Busto Arsizio, Castellanza, Rescaldina, Saronno, Milano Bovisa, Milano Lancetti, Milano Porta Garibaldi M2-M5, Milano Repubblica M3, Milano Porta Venezia M1, Milano Dateo and Milano Porta Vittoria. The service was terminated in October 2012.
The Malpensa – Varese – Mendrisio (CH) – Lugano (CH) line provides a direct connection between Malpensa Airport/Aeroporto and the south-eastern part of Switzerland. There are plans to connect Gallarate Station and Milan's Centrale Station (FS), which is currently a terminus station with no through tracks, to allow more convenient access to high-speed international lines.

### 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.

### 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.