Plans for new runway at Alicante Airport blocked by government
The Ministry of Transport insists that Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport can handle 26 million passengers with a single runway
Hopes for a second runway at Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport have been dashed by Spain’s Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, who last week insisted that the airlines operating at the Costa Blanca aerodrome “say that there is no need” for one.
Last month, Aena CEO Maurici Lucena sparked controversy when he hinted that a new runway would be included in massive expansion plans scheduled to begin sometime after 2027, but it now seems that the 600 million euros will be spent on building an additional terminal instead.
With this extension, the Minister is confident that Alicante Airport will easily be able to handle 26 million passengers per year.
This doesn’t seem like too much of a stretch considering London’s Gatwick Airport welcomes 35 million travellers per annum with only one runway, while Alicante currently only has to cope with around 16 million.
But while Mr Puente has ruled out a new runway “for the moment”, he has insisted that “it does not mean that it will not be done when it is considered necessary”.
The 6 million euro expansion at Alicante Airport should begin in the last quarter of the year, he added.
“What is going to be done is to provide a terminal, more lines, more capacity and the ability to grow in operations. That’s what we’re working on. I have no reason not to help this airport if I can do it and what is proposed is necessary,” he said.
In March, Alicante Airport was voted the best in Europe in its category of between 15 and 25 million annual passengers.
Image: Archive
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