The fact that the Lanzarote Airport Master Plan includes the expansion of the island's airport runway does not mean that the works will be undertaken next year, but it would guarantee that the island does not have to wait another 20 years to put this debate on the table. The fact is that 20 years is too long for an international runway that was born small.
The Lanzarote airport runway, with 2,400 meters, is the smallest in its category in Spain. The first 15 airports in the country, according to passenger traffic, have longer runways. Lanzarote occupies the eighth or ninth place in this list, according to year and season, so we can say that the Lanzarote airport is far below other smaller airports in terms of infrastructure.
It is also one of the only ten profitable airports in the country, which means that of all the airport network, ours is one of the few that generates large profits and with those profits has been investing in unprofitable airports that also have other alternative communication channels.
Lanzarote has been asking for 16 years for an improvement of infrastructure to be included in its Master Plan, pending approval since 2008. The island airport is the main means of communication for people and goods given its island status and is the basic axis of our economy.
The expansion of this infrastructure is not to bring more tourists but to improve the operability of the airport, comply with current regulations and gain in environmental quality and competitiveness.
Currently some flights with a duration of around four hours and depending on weather conditions, are forced to make a stopover because they cannot refuel all the fuel needed for the entire journey. This responds to mandatory compliance tables that directly relate the weight to the characteristics of the runway. And let's be honest, when you buy a plane ticket, what do you prefer, a direct flight or with stopovers?
Stopovers are annoying, increase the costs of operations due to the increase in airport fees, involve a greater expenditure of fuel and do not seem to have much justification in four-hour flights. The problem with the weight is due to the short length of the runway and the existing natural obstacles, which do not allow a conventional operation. There are specific moments in which the limitation of the runway prevents loading the fresh merchandise that is exported with the consequent economic damages for the fresh products industry as it is the case of the fish.
Public and business institutions launch a consensual claim: there is no more delay, it is fair and there are no more excuses for this need to be met. We deserve it even if only for the profitability we generate.
