Ibiza Airport
Encyclopedia
Ibiza Airport is the airport serving the Balearic
islands of Ibiza
and Formentera
in Spain
, used by 95% of all people who arrive at or depart from these two islands. The airport is located 7 km (4.3 mi) southwest of Ibiza Town
.
The airport traffic is characterised by the seasonal nature of the tourist industry, and as such it handles over 85% of the total volume of passengers during the six months of the peak season (May–October). The airport also offers year-round scheduled inter-island and mainland traffic, with flights operating to primary business hubs, such as Barcelona
, Madrid
and Palma de Mallorca
.
, and remained open after the conflict for use as an emergency airport.
In 1949 the site was used to operate some domestic and international tourist flights, but was then closed in 1951.
It was not until 1958 that work commenced to re-open the airport in reaction to the rapid development of the tourist market in the Balearic Islands, particularly in neighbouring Majorca. The airport was reopened on 1 April 1958 with the first destinations during that year including Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid.
The airport was expanded progressively over the subsequent decades with runway, taxiway, apron and terminal enhancements designed to cope with the growing air tourist market which by the late 1990s was generating over 3.5 million passengers a year at the airport.
In 2010 the airport handled over 5 million passengers and around 57,000 aircraft movements, an increase of 10.2% and 6.4% respectively compared with 2009.
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain with Palma as the capital...
islands of Ibiza
Ibiza
Ibiza or Eivissa is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea 79 km off the coast of the city of Valencia in Spain. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, an autonomous community of Spain. With Formentera, it is one of the two Pine Islands or Pityuses. Its largest cities are Ibiza...
and Formentera
Formentera
Formentera is the smaller and more southerly island of the Pine Islands group , which belongs to the Balearic Islands autonomous community .-Geography:...
in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, used by 95% of all people who arrive at or depart from these two islands. The airport is located 7 km (4.3 mi) southwest of Ibiza Town
Ibiza Town
Ibiza Town is a city and municipality located on the southeast coast of the island of Ibiza in the Balearic Islands autonomous community. Although called Ibiza in English and Spanish, the official name is in Catalan Eivissa and its inhabitants call it Vila d'Eivissa or simply Vila...
.
The airport traffic is characterised by the seasonal nature of the tourist industry, and as such it handles over 85% of the total volume of passengers during the six months of the peak season (May–October). The airport also offers year-round scheduled inter-island and mainland traffic, with flights operating to primary business hubs, such as Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
and Palma de Mallorca
Palma de Mallorca
Palma is the major city and port on the island of Majorca and capital city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. The names Ciutat de Mallorca and Ciutat were used before the War of the Spanish Succession and are still used by people in Majorca. However, the official name...
.
History
The airport was first established as a temporary military airport during the Spanish Civil WarSpanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, and remained open after the conflict for use as an emergency airport.
In 1949 the site was used to operate some domestic and international tourist flights, but was then closed in 1951.
It was not until 1958 that work commenced to re-open the airport in reaction to the rapid development of the tourist market in the Balearic Islands, particularly in neighbouring Majorca. The airport was reopened on 1 April 1958 with the first destinations during that year including Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid.
The airport was expanded progressively over the subsequent decades with runway, taxiway, apron and terminal enhancements designed to cope with the growing air tourist market which by the late 1990s was generating over 3.5 million passengers a year at the airport.
In 2010 the airport handled over 5 million passengers and around 57,000 aircraft movements, an increase of 10.2% and 6.4% respectively compared with 2009.
Airlines and destinations
Statistics
| Passengers | Aircraft Movements | Cargo (tonnes) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 3,556,828 | ||
| 1998 | 3,780,181 | ||
| 1999 | 4,185,633 | 45,959 | |
| 2000 | 4,475,708 | 52,544 | 4,985 |
| 2001 | 4,472,279 | 52,079 | 4,531 |
| 2002 | 4,094,446 | 48,344 | 4,426 |
| 2003 | 4,157,291 | 47,990 | 4,232 |
| 2004 | 4,171,580 | 48,798 | 4,510 |
| 2005 | 4,164,703 | 49,603 | 4,350 |
| 2006 | 4,460,141 | 54,146 | 4,427 |
| 2007 | 4,765,625 | 57,855 | 4,308 |
| 2008 | 4,647,487 | 57,235 | 3,928 |
| 2009 | 4,572,819 | 53,552 | 3,143 |
| 2010 | 5,040,800 | 56,988 | 3,196 |
| Source: Aena Statistics Aena Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea , literally "Spanish Airports and Air Navigation", is the Spanish public body that owns and operates the majority of airports in Spain, with the exceptions of the private owned Ciudad Reals and Lleida-Alguaire Airport. Aena is also responsible for Air... |
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