A total of 14,747,830 people travelled through Edinburgh Airport last year, making 2019 the busiest in the airport’s history and the busiest ever year for a Scottish airport.

Edinburgh Airport is owned by New York-based owner Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), which has recently explored a sale for as much as £2 billion, according to reports.

GIP bought the airport from BAA for £807 million in 2012.

The news of record traffic came as Edinburgh Airport CEO Gordon Dewar conceded the airport has “a responsibility to manage that success in a sustainable manner.”

Dewar said ” … we need to show leadership in this area and we are currently finalising a strategy which will map out our approach to operations at Edinburgh to make them even more sustainable than they already are.”

The 2019 numbers were up 3.1% on 2018 with growth in international passengers driving the increase.

Domestic passengers fell 0.7% to 5,338,511 but international rose 5.3% to 9,409,319.

Dewar added: “We’re delighted to deliver a record year for any Scottish airport as passengers continued to take advantage of new routes, new airlines and the opportunity to expand their horizons and travel the world. 

“We never lose sight of the fact that the airport is a conduit to a whole host of things.

“We play our part in tourism, business, education, research and culture.

“We are that gateway to Scotland and the world, and direct connectivity to countries across the world plays a huge part in that success.

“Clearly, we want to see that success continue to benefit Edinburgh and Scotland and travel will always be a part of that, but we do have a responsibility to manage that success in a sustainable manner.

“We appreciate that we need to show leadership in this area and we are currently finalising a strategy which will map out our approach to operations at Edinburgh to make them even more sustainable than they already are.

“We look forward to sharing that strategy and engaging with our communities on it.”