Castellón–Costa Azahar Airport

Castellón Airport (Spanish: Aeropuerto de Castellón, Valencian: Aeroport de Castelló), (IATA: CDT, ICAO: LECH)[1] is an airport serving the city of Castellón de la Plana, located near Vilanova d'Alcolea, Benlloc and Cabanes in the Valencian Community, Spain.

This article is about the new international airport. For the older general aviation airport, see Castellón Airport.
Castellón Airport

Aeropuerto de Castellón

Aeroport de Castelló
Summary
Airport typePrivate
Owner/OperatorSNC-Lavalin
ServesCastellón de la Plana
LocationVilanova d'Alcolea, Benlloch
Elevation AMSL360 m / 1,181 ft
Coordinates40°12′35″N 0°04′11″E
WebsiteCastellón Airport Website
Map
LECH is located in Spain
LECH
LECH
Location in Spain
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
06/24 2,700 8,858 Asphalt

History

The airport was officially declared "open" by local authorities in March 2011, shortly before regional elections and as total cost reached €150 million,[2] despite having neither airlines signed up to land there nor government approval to operate. Delayed for several years, commercial flights were due to begin on 1 April 2012,[3] but the first commercial flight to the airport landed on 15 September 2015.[4]

In February 2012, it was reported that modifications would have to be made to the runway before the airport could be brought into use.[5] It was then later reported that the runway was to be dug up entirely.[6]

The airport has become a symbol of the wasteful spending that has helped sink Spain deep into a recession and a banking crisis.[7] For instance, the company in charge of running the airport, Aerocas, was found to have spent 26 million euros, a sixth of the cost of the airport, on sponsoring various sports teams in its region.[8] Also, a $375,000, 24-metre-tall statue, often interpreted as a representation of Carlos Fabra, the formerly powerful local politician who was the driving force behind its construction, was erected just outside the airport. Fabra has been under judicial investigation in connection with several cases of corruption and tax evasion,[7] and was sentenced to four years in prison for tax fraud in December 2014.[9]

On 14 January 2014, nearly four years after the formal opening of the airport, a first flight departed from Castellón-Costa Azahar. Air Nostrum charter flight YW2003 carried the Villarreal CF football team, which is sponsored by the airport itself, to San Sebastián for their Copa del Rey match against Real Sociedad.[10][11]

The first regular scheduled, albeit seasonal, flights from Castellón-Costa Azahar to Bristol and London Stansted, operated by Ryanair, began in September 2015.[12] The European Union has opened a formal investigation into whether both the Canadian company that manages the airport (SNC-Lavalin) and Ryanair are receiving illegal subsidies from the regional government.[13]

Between August and November 2020, three British Airways Boeing 747 aircraft that were retired were transported to Castellón–Costa Azahar Airport for dismantling.[14] One aircraft, registration G-CIVD, caught fire and was severely damaged.[15]

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Castellón–Costa Azahar Airport became a storage facility for Ukraine International Airlines fleet of six Boeing 737 aircraft.[16]

In 2022, a number of airlines scheduled new routes from the airport. These included Wizz Air to Budapest, Ryanair to Dublin and Brussels South Charleroi and Air Nostrum connecting the airport domestically to Madrid.[17][18][19]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Castellón–Costa Azahar Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
Iberia Madrid[20]
Seasonal: Seville
Ryanair Charleroi, London–Stansted, Weeze
Seasonal: Dublin,[21][22] Porto
Wizz Air Bucharest–Otopeni
Seasonal: Budapest, Katowice, Rome–Fiumicino[23]

References
  1. "Castellon De La Plana Airport (CDT) Website". SNC Lavalin. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  2. Burns, Justin (27 January 2014). "Investors bidding for Spanish 'ghost airport'". Archived from the original on 3 June 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  3. "Spain's Vacant Airport Typifies European Woes". Miller-McCune. Archived from the original on 2011-11-23.
  4. "First commercial flight lands at Spanish 'ghost airport' nearly five years after it opened". The Daily Telegraph. September 15, 2015.
  5. Fabra, María (2012-02-14). "Airstrip at Castellón's plane-free airport needs to be widened". El País. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  6. Fiona, Movan (2012-02-15). "Spanish 'ghost' airport's unused runway to be dug up". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-08-01.
  7. "In Spain, a Symbol of Ruin at an Airport to Nowhere". The New York Times. July 18, 2012.
  8. "EU denuncia que el aeropuerto de Castellón gastó 26 millones en patrocinios". El País. April 4, 2014.
  9. Kassam, Ashifa (2 December 2014). "Spanish politician who built ghost airport begins jail term for tax fraud". the Guardian.
  10. Topham, Gwyn (10 March 2015). "Ryanair to become first airline to fly to Spain's ghost airport". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
  11. Lowe, Sid (19 January 2015). "Champions League a possible destination as Villarreal take flight at last". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
  12. "Ryanair launches London Stansted Winter 2015 Schedule - Stansted Airport". www.stanstedairport.com. Archived from the original on 2015-03-15. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
  13. Cebrián, Joaquín Ferrandis, Belén Domínguez (10 September 2015). "Bruselas investiga las ayudas al aeropuerto de Castellón". El País.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. "Where Are British Airways' Former Boeing 747s Now?". simpleflying.com. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  15. "What Happened To The BA 747 That Caught Fire Last Month?". simpleflying.com. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  16. "Castellon airport becomes a car park for a Ukrainian airline fleet". Euro Weekly News. 18 February 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  17. "Wizz Air provides new connections from Budapest Airport". aviation24.be. June 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  18. "Castellón airport will be connected by Ryanair with Brussels South Charleroi from 27 March". aviation24.be. 10 March 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  19. "Air Nostrum's Castellon-Madrid route expected to be a 'turning point' for Castellon's connectivity". Centre For Aviation. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  20. "Vuelo Castellón-Madrid en una hora y por menos de 60 euros". 18 July 2022.
  21. https://www.aviation24.be/airlines/ryanair/cuts-17-routes-and-19-aircraft-from-dublin-airport-over-45-increase-in-airport-costs/
  22. "Ryanair announces seven new routes for winter". 7 June 2022.
  23. "Wizz Air apre altre 5 rotte da Roma. Castellon, Baku, Abu Dhabi, Lussemburgo e Kuwait City". 15 December 2022.


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