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IS MURCIA BIG ENOUGH FOR TWO AIRPORTS?

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Staff Reporter / 2010-06-25 13:46:10

Can two commercial airports survive together in Murcia, separated by a distance of just 30 kilometres?  As the opening date of the new airport in Corvera grows closer, San Javier´s second runway looks set to commence being used.  However, as the management of the San Javier Airport had originally feared would happen, businessmen, the regional government and opposition parties all seem to agree that “this province ain’t big enough for two airports”.  They propose closing San Javier to commercial air traffic in favour of the new airport at Corvera. 

They claim that San Javier´s limitations, due to the fact that it is also the training base for the military pilots, mean that it is better equipped to concentrate on the General Air Academy and leave the commercial flights for Corvera.  Corvera Airport is the baby of the regional government, who will do their utmost to ensure its success. 

The duel between the two airports may be decided by AENA (Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea), who may opt to give up San Javier and concentrate on Corvera and Alicante airport, which is just 75 kilometres away and also looks set to expand further in the next few years, doubling the numbers of travellers using its installations. 

However, the fact that AENA have allowed the construction of the second runway at San Javier looks favourable for this airport´s survival. 

At the end of the day the deciding factor may be the paying public, who will choose which airport they wish to fly to.  The Corvera airport probably won´t begin use until the beginning of 2012, so San Javier airport has nothing to worry about for the next 18 months.  Let´s hope at least some of the air flight companies stay loyal to San Javier, to enable the both airports to function together. 

The Corvera airport was planned and started during Spain´s boom years when no one guessed that the dream the county was living would crash land into the crisis we are all experiencing at present.  Ideally the Corvera airport will give the whole area a huge boost, providing jobs, visitors and increased tourism. 

 

Tags: Murcia, Airports