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GIBRALTAR Airport could welcome up to 20,000 passengers a single day, after Spain officially recognised the airstrip as a part of Schengen.
La Linea mayor Juan Franco confirmed to the Olive Press that the long-disputed airport – until now blocked from EU aviation agreements – will be acknowledged by Spain as part of the Common European Aviation Area.
Franco said that “Spain now recognizes that there is an Airport, and that the Airport will enter the European Common Aviation Area to allow commercial aircraft from the other parts of Europe to come,”
The new agreement, hailed as ‘common sense’ by the mayor, marks a major political shift since the current terminal was first opened in 2012.
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It also raises the possibility of expanding the airport’s facilities onto Spanish soil – a plan La Línea is ready for, Franco confirmed.
“We have reserved land so that, if it’s necessary to expand part of the terminal onto Spanish territory, we could use that land,” he said, referring to a 5,000–10,000 square metre plot just beyond the border.
He acknowledged, however, that expansion might not be required.
“But building just to build it is not my opinion.” I believe that the current terminal’s dimensions already meet even future needs – although I’m not an engineer.”
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Franco suggested the airport could handle a figure much higher than commonly thought – but with caveats.
“I saw an airport that could accommodate about 20,000 people per day,” he explained. “But this wasn’t official documentation.”
The airport in Gibraltar could, if the figures are accurate, handle around seven million passengers each year.
It is on par with Sevilla, a regional hub, which saw around 30 million passengers in 2013.
However, Gibraltar airport’s official design capacity is believed to be between 1.5 and 2 million passengers per year, equivalent to roughly 4,000–5,500 passengers per day.
La Linea has yet to decide whether it will build its terminal, as the future demand and current capacity are still uncertain. But change is certain.
There are many things that will be certain after the Brexit agreement between the UK & EU regarding Gibraltar. One of them is the fact that the airport soon accepts flights from cities such as Madrid and Barcelona, or even destinations outside the EU. For example, Morocco.
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“If flights began arriving from Madrid or Barcelona, as well as other cities, this would be an amazing opportunity in terms of economics, tourism, and development.
Franco continued, “It’s a fantastic news for the entire region.”
Currently, Gibraltar airport receives only a handful of flights per day from the UK, due to Spain’s longstanding refusal to recognise the legitimacy of the airfield, which Madrid considers to sit on ‘usurped’ Spanish land.
If expansion does not go ahead, Franco revealed that the reserved land, which has just hosted La Línea’s feria, instead, will be turned into a technology-park.
He said, “This is approximately 70,000 square metres of municipal land. And we will start developing a Technology Centre.”
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It will serve as a home for new businesses that he hopes will flock to the region thanks to the removal of the physical border with Gibraltar – and an expanded airport.
We should stop arguing about who owns this land and just agree that it is an airport. We can debate ownership later.”
He confirmed the project’s backing by the Spanish Government, and a memorandum is due to be sent from Madrid.
At the moment it appears that we are doing [have support from Madrid]. “We hope to finish the memorandum by this week.”
AENA is the Spanish airport authority. The Ministry of Transport has not yet been formally consulted.
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Franco also said that he spoke informally to Gibraltar’s Chief Minister Fabian Picardo at a recent Chamber of Commerce Dinner and hoped for a deeper level of cooperation after the summer. feria The war is over.
Franco compared this potential setup with Geneva’s international Airport, which spans the Swiss and French border.
He stated that he expects joint border checks to be conducted using integrated computer systems. This will avoid the need for the controversial measure in the agreement which would have separate Gibraltar officers and Policia Nacional officers duplicating passport control.
“The control will be joint, with an integrated computer system,” he explained, negating the need for the dual checks as ‘it wouldn’t make sense’.
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“The normal thing, I believe — though I don’t know for sure — is that the registration will be done by the British or Gibraltarian police using a computer system that I assume will be connected to the Spanish database.
“And since there won’t be any more checks — because once you enter through Gibraltar, you’ve entered the EU — it will already be logged.
“If you asked me that 30 years ago, then I would have answered: Of course there will be a double check.”
“But when everything is signed and the border is gone… the normal thing is for there to be a single check and for the databases to be connected.”
But he added: “I don’t have the information – I’m just telling you what I would do.”
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The official position regarding the airport is that a joint venture company will be set up in Ireland, owned 50/50 by Gibraltar and Spain, which will award a tender to a separate commercial operator to run the airport – but ownership of the airport will remain with the Gibraltar government.
This arrangement guarantees that Gibraltar will not consent to any changes. It also marks a move backwards compared to the Cordoba agreement of 2006 where the joint-company managed the terminal itself.
The Gibraltar government told the Olive Press that ‘nothing has changed’ regarding the airport.
Nonetheless, Franco mayor described upcoming developments as a ‘historic opportunity’ for La Línea, comparing the town’s recovery to a patient leaving intensive care.
“We were in ICU. Now we’ve been moved to a ward – we still have problems, but we’re recovering.”
The Olive Press offers more Gibraltar News.
