Our history

Aeroporti di Roma's journey began in 1974. Since the very beginning, innovation and tradition, people and technologies of excellence, large investments in infrastructure and quality services have constantly been intertwined with the aim of providing excellent services to passengers, airport operators and stakeholders within an increasingly international dimension.
 

The history of Roman airports has always taken place mainly in the area south-southwest of the capital, with the exception of the Littorio airport, now called Urbe, built along the Via Salaria. The first port of call in Rome was the 'Giovan Battista Pastine' at Ciampino, on the Via Appia. Established in 1916 as a military airship base, it was expanded in 1924 to make room for fighter and bombing aircraft.
In the late 1930s, the incessant development of civil aviation and forecasts of further growth led to the decision to provide Rome with a new airport for both aircraft and seaplanes. The identified location was always on the south-west axis, at Magliana, not far from the EUR district. However, work could not begin due to the ongoing war and the airport remained just a project.
At the end of WWII, the idea of building a new civil airport on Roman territory was concretely resumed and, after years of work, the 'Leonardo da Vinci' airport was officially inaugurated by the President of the Italian Republic, Giovanni Gronchi, on 20 August 1960 - although its official opening to scheduled civil traffic was postponed until 16 January 1961. Compared to the executive project, considerable extensions were implemented that transformed the original structure, making Rome's main airport an ever-evolving work. In addition to the international air terminal, the infrastructure consisted of two runways, two piers, an operations building (comprising an office building, briefing room and control tower), a domestic air terminal, a cargo warehouse, a customs office building and a hangar.

The first ten years of the airport were mainly committed to the completion of the basic facilities, with the extension of the two original runways (in 1972), the start of the construction of the third runway (completed in 1975) and the expansion of the international terminal, with the division of incoming and outgoing traffic into two different levels in 1973.

 

In this context of growing development, on 12 February 1974 the Italian Ministry of Transport took over a subsidiary of the State as sole concessionaire in the unitary management of the airports 'Leonardo da Vinci' at Fiumicino and 'Giovan Battista Pastine' at Ciampino: this is when Aeroporti di Roma S.p.A. was established. With its entry, the company absorbed the more than 50 pre-existing service companies, emerging from the outset as the largest airport operator in Italy. Air traffic at Rome's airports at the time amounted to 9.7 million passengers, of which 8.9 million transited at Fiumicino and 0.75 million at Ciampino.

In more recent years, precisely in July 1997, the privatisation of Aeroporti di Roma S.p.A. was launched with the placement of 45% of the share capital on the market through both a public and private offer aimed at Italian and foreign institutional investors. Such privatisation ended in 2000 with the divestment of state-owned holdings. The entry of Atlantia (now Mundys) into ADR's capital in 2013 marks a new chapter.
The capital's airports have always been distinguished by their continuous and progressive transformation: over the years, numerous infrastructure development and modernisation projects have been carried out to effectively respond to the increase in traffic volumes. In particular, the 'Leonardo da Vinci’ infrastructure, today Italy's first airport and an internationally acknowledged excellence, has been gradually integrated to meet the new requirements of increased passenger traffic - an integration that has always confirmed, at every stage, the original approach. In each of the interventions, the primary driver of development has always been the efficient use of the airport grounds, so much so that the current extension of the of the 'Leonardo da Vinci’ airport, amounting to approximately 1,600 hectares, coincides with the perimeter already defined at the time of ADR's foundation in 1974, as does the number of runways, with runways 1 and 2 in operation since 1961 and runway 3 since 1975.
The growth of Rome Fiumicino, whose traffic has tripled since 1989, with 40.5 million passengers passing through in 2023 thanks to a schedule that has exceeded 200 destinations served directly in more than 70 countries, has played and still plays a decisive role in contributing to the economic development of the area in which it operates, as well as of the city of Rome and the country. The transformation of the 'Leonardo da Vinci' international airport in recent years, in addition to the continuous search for excellence in organisation and staff training as well as maximum safety and quality of processes and technologies, has been accompanied by an evolution of the airport concept that has progressively turned it into a platform connecting passengers, visitors, airport operators with art, culture, innovation and sustainability. Italy's gateway to the world, over the years Rome Fiumicino airport succeeded in overcoming important challenges and achieving goals of excellence that have led it to climb the rankings of European and world airports: this is evidenced by the Skytrax 5-star rating, the highest international recognition in the industry, as well as (for the sixth time in a row in the last six years) the 'Airport Service Quality' award in the category of European hubs with over 40 million passengers for the quality of services offered.

 

1974 - Aeroporti di Roma S.p.A. (ADR) was established with the aim of assigning all the activities of the two Roman airports to a single manager, which was later to become the exclusive concessionaire for the management and development of the capital's airport system.

1975 - Inauguration of the new runway 3.

1976 - The new National Air Terminal at Fiumicino Airport is completed, later incorporated into the former departure area C (now A21-27) and Terminal 2.

1990 - On the occasion of the World Cup, the new domestic pier (now boarding area A 31-59), the Airline Office Tower (EPUA 1), the first module of the multi-storey car park, the new long-stay car park, the railway station with the connection to Rome and the renovation of the international departures were built.

1991 - Expansion of Terminal 1.

1995 - Completion of the new 'Europa' Pier for international flights (now the A-10 embarkation area) and the new baggage handling facility (BHS).

1997 - The privatisation of Aeroporti di Roma was launched with the placement of 45% of the share capital on the market through both a public and private offer aimed at Italian and foreign institutional investors.

1998 - Completion of the extension of Terminal 3 eastwards, integrated into the original 1960 core, with new check-in areas and baggage reclaim belts.

1999 - Inauguration of the satellite at Terminal 3 (now Gate E 31-44) and the automated People Mover System.

2000 - The privatisation of ADR was concluded with the divestment of the state-owned holdings through IRI. In the same year, on the occasion of the Jubilee, Terminal 1 was completed with new areas and capacity for arriving and departing passengers.

2001 - Fiumicino airport took on its current configuration.

2004 - Inauguration of Cargo City, the area dedicated to the transport and management of goods and shipments. Cargo City offered several terminals and logistics facilities for the processing, storage and distribution of goods passing through the airport.

2005 - New infrastructure was completed at Ciampino airport to accommodate the growing number of passengers linked to the growing phenomenon of low-cost flights.

2007 - The liquidation of the Romiti family's stake in Gemina (the holding company of Aeroporti di Roma at that time) was completed and the Benetton family subsequently became the main shareholder of Aeroporti di Roma through Sintonia.

2008 - The new Terminal 5 dedicated to airline flights to the United States and Israel was inaugurated, redeveloping the building that previously housed cargo operations. The work, which began in October 2007, was completed in less than six months with an investment of 13 million euros, all financed by ADR. Today, Terminal 5 is used for special and military flights.

2009 - The cogeneration plant was completed, enabling the airport to be self-sufficient also through the production of renewable energy with a view to environmental protection.

2011 - New infrastructure was built at Ciampino Airport to accommodate an increasing number of passengers.

2013 - Atlantia (now Mundys) entered the capital of ADR through the merger by incorporation of Gemina, which controlled Aeroporti di Roma. Currently, Mundys holds 99.39% of ADR's capital. At the beginning of the year, the 2012 Programme Agreement signed by ADR and ENAC was approved to improve the airport's operational efficiency and quality of services, marking a turning point for ADR. Since 2013, in fact, Fiumicino airport has undergone constant and progressive expansion, becoming the best airport in Europe within a few years.

2014 - Fiumicino was among the first airports in Europe to install the new automated tray transport systems at security checkpoints, with a major improvement in the quality perceived by passengers and the waiting time at security.

2016 - The new international boarding area E, intended for non-Schengen flights, was inaugurated. It covered some 90,000 square metres of passenger service levels without additional land consumption. This state-of-the-art infrastructure in Europe could accommodate more than 6 million extra departing passengers each year, housing 22 new gates as well as a new baggage handling system serving Terminal 3. In the same year, the construction of the new baggage system serving Terminal 1 in the building previously used for Alitalia's Cargo activities was completed.

2017 - Since this year, ADR has been collecting awards and prizes for quality, making Rome Fiumicino airport one of the most popular in Europe. From 2017 to 2022, ACI Word honoured Leonardo da Vinci with the Airport Service Quality Award, whereas ACI Europe gave the Roman airport the Best Airport Award for the years 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 for achieving excellence in several key areas, including safety, operations, infrastructure, community relations, environmental awareness, innovation and customer experience. Also in 2017, the new General Aviation terminal at Ciampino was opened.

2020 - The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) awards Fiumicino, the world's first airport, the Leadership in Sustainability and Commitment Responsible Travel.

2021 - ADR received the Aci Europe Digital Transformation Award for its investment in the brand new Airport Operation Centre and the implementation of the new innovation model focused on Open Innovation. Fiumicino and Ciampino airports, the first airports in Europe, obtained ACI Europe's Airport Carbon Accreditation 4+ ‘Transition’ certification on the reduction of direct and indirect CO2 emissions, with which the company committed to progressively reducing the environmental footprint of its airports and adopting the Net Zero Emission target by 2030, twenty years ahead of the target set at European airport sector level.
In the course of the year, important work was carried out on the extension of Terminal 1, the opening of the new security controls and the construction of the new ‘Piazza’. In the same year, the complete redevelopment of Terminal 3 began in the areas of the original 1961 air terminal core: a complex intervention that in phases is now returning a Terminal updated in the functional components of the arrival and departure systems but recovering the peculiarities of the original construction. Completion is scheduled for 2025.

2022 - The new boarding area A for Schengen and domestic flights was inaugurated. This 37,000 square metre intervention represents the first major infrastructure built in Italy after the pandemic. LEED Gold-certified, the new pier has 23 gates and is connected to a new 6,000 square metre shopping mall with 21 points of sale, representing Italian shopping and food excellence. In the same year, the Transit Frontier became operational at the area at the root of Pier D (today Gate A1-10).
Also in 2022, the Innovation Hub, one of the first innovative hubs dedicated to the airport sector, was inaugurated at Terminal 1, offering Italian and international start-ups the opportunity to develop and field-test their ideas. This is why Plug and Play Tech Center, the largest private investment fund in Silicon Valley, awarded ADR the 'Corporate Innovation Award' for its commitment to promoting open innovation initiatives - an award confirmed for the year 2023. In 2022, ACI World will include ADR in the 'Director General's Roll of Excellence', to which only 69 out of more than 18,000 airports worldwide belong for the very high standards of quality offered to their passengers.

2023 - Completion of the redevelopment of the former Domestic Pier (gates A31-59) following the seismic upgrading, regulatory compliance, functional upgrading and renewal of the boarding docks. In the same year, the new Piazza, the centre of gravity of the larger Terminal 1 expansion project, was completed, along with the opening of the new gates (formerly boarding area C) completed during the summer and the shopping arcade in autumn. Also in 2023, Fiumicino is among the first airports in
Europe to install the new EDS C3 radiogenic machines, that guarantee the highest standard of security for hand luggage screening by allowing passengers to leave liquids, aerosols and gels in any quantity and electrical/electronic devices inside during the screening process.  The Shoes Analyzer devices also became operational, which minimise the need to remove shoes before inspection.
On 3 February 2023, ADR S.p.A. set up its Corporate Venture Capital fund 'ADR Ventures', the first investment vehicle for start-ups in the airport industry. Fiumicino airport, so far the first and only airport in Italy, has been awarded five stars by Skytrax, the highest accolade given by the international air transport rating organisation.