There are around 500.000 that pass through the Tirana airport each year, the number have been growing and by 2009, they belive the number will be at 1.5 to 2 million.
Albania has three airlines, Albanian Airlines created in 1995 and are right now the biggest company. AdA AiR created in 1992, but much smaller than Albanian Airlines, and the newest one, Albatros Airlines which was created this year and operates with an airplane rented from the Montenegrin national carrier.
The airport is horrible and extremely small with only three gates. You have to use buses to get to the planes. However, i think this is completely understandable since a civilian airport was not needed in Albania during communist rule since we were isolated from both the capitalists and the communists. Airport Partners, has taken now contol (they are one of theb biggest airport companies owing Athens Airport, part of Sydney Airport and some others) and they just fired 300 workers. Lockheed Martin is responsible for the security.
The city itself, officially, has about 520.000 however, there are differences depending by which areas you count in. There are suburbs which have been created by new-coming people, and there are also something resembling close to satellite cities. I have read that officially the number is 520.000 with about 350.000 living in the original borders of the city, which have been extended for quite some time now. 750.000, too however, i do not think it would be necessary a overestimated number again because it depends by how you count it. Athens according the the world-gazetter has a population of 600.000 however, in Greece and outside it is assumed that Athens is about 4.000.000, since there isn't anymore any distinction between differents cities in the Attiki areas such as Pireas, Faliro, or Kifisia.
