Aena's ambitious investment plan for the 2027-2031 period goes hand in hand with an increase in airport fees. This source of revenue is, in Aena's view, a "necessary" way to finance the investment plan for the coming years and adapt to the air traffic demand at the state's airports, including El Prat Airport, and therefore, its expansion. However, this has sparked a conflict with the airlines, which continue to lobby against the fee increase.

Aena insists it will not budge on the transfer of airport management, including the management of El Prat Airport. In fact, when the expansion of the Catalan airport was announced, that issue was already shelved. The airport operator's position has remained unchanged for years, although it has opened the door to "greater coordination" with the autonomous communities and, therefore, with governments like the Generalitat (Catalan government). "The transfer of airport management would be null and void," declared Aena's president, Mauricio Lucena, this Thursday during a breakfast briefing in Madrid, an event he used to reiterate his support for the expansion of the Catalan airport. It's worth noting that in Catalonia, the possibility of a leading role for the Generalitat has always been an ambition of parties like ERC and Junts.

Like so many things, Juan Carlos Lacruz's passion for photography and airplanes began by chance. Today, retired, he goes to El Prat airport every other day and is the president of the Barcelona Spotters Association.

With the agreement for the unique financing just around the cornerThe Catalan government has opened a new key initiative with the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC). This involves the creation of the Airport Authority of Catalonia, which the executive council agreed to promote this Wednesday at its first meeting after the Christmas holidays. As stipulated in the investiture agreement with the ERC, it will be a specialized body through which the Generalitat (Catalan government) will implement its own policies to achieve "comprehensive governance" of the airport system. "Its creation allows us to overcome the fragmentation we currently have," explained the government spokesperson and Minister of Territory, Silvia Paneque, at a press conference. To this end, the government has tasked a technical committee, coordinated by Public Airports of Catalonia, with drafting a proposal within six months to amend the airport law to create this body and its statutes. The creation of the Airport Authority of Catalonia will therefore require parliamentary approval. The executive branch anticipates it will be operational by 2027.

Enric impatiently checks his watch, bus ticket in hand. He has a flight and had planned to take the R2 to El Prat airport, but the train is delayed, and he's decided against it, not wanting to risk missing it. He says this isn't an isolated incident, but rather a recurring scene every time he has a flight. "I travel quite a bit, and I always take the Aerobús because, unfortunately, it's the only one that never fails," he says resignedly. He's certain he'll be one of the future users of the shuttle train that will connect Barcelona and the two terminals when it becomes operational at the end of 2026, according to the Catalan government's schedule, but he laments that the R-Airport line (RA) "It's way too late."

Among the many outstanding issues in Catalan infrastructure is the need to reach the airport more quickly and comfortably by public transport. Specifically, with a shuttle train connecting Barcelona and the two terminals at El Prat Airport. This Friday, the President of the Generalitat (Catalan government), Salvador Illa, led the presentation of the first of ten electric trains—which are brand new—ordered by Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat (FGC) and the company Alstom. The green and white trains will be part of the future R-Airport (RA), which is expected to enter operation in 2026 (early 2027 at the latest), and must resolve this problem.

Aena, the state airport operator, plans an unprecedented investment of €12.88 billion between 2027 and 2031 for the Spanish airport network, of which €9.991 billion corresponds to regulated investment, as announced by the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, this Thursday. The company then notified the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV). The nearly €13 billion represents a surge in investment over the past five years: for example, between 2022 and 2026, regulated investment alone will have amounted to €2.5 billion.

A man died this Tuesday at Bergamo-Orio al Serio Airport, in northern Italy, after entering the runway and being sucked into the engine of a plane as it was preparing for takeoff. The plane involved was an Airbus A319 of the Spanish company Volotea whose destination was Oviedo Airport.

The social stakeholders who ensure Catalonia's economic dynamism welcome the agreement to expand the airport. A change that, for example, could allow nonstop flights from Japan. Or allow more direct flights to the United States. But the questions that still remain unanswered are: who will the passengers be and what will they bring to us?

Airport expansion is much more than a logistical matter. All major investments project a vision for the country. When the Ebro River transfer was discussed, the focus wasn't so much on cubic meters as on the feeling of permanent neglect suffered by the country's southern regions. Now, no matter how much experts talk about long runways or transoceanic connections, the debate leaves us with the unpleasant feeling of playing the country's future with a single card.

Once the light is on, Green light for the expansion of El Prat airport Doubts arise that perhaps should have been resolved earlier. And not all of them are green, that is, environmental, which are undoubtedly also essential. The first has to do with governance. Who will manage this facility? Shouldn't economic and social stakeholders be involved in some way? And to know exactly what we're talking about, shouldn't the manager, Aena, provide financial data on each of the airports, starting with the one in the Catalan capital?

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of listening to Jordi Sargatal on TV3. The eminent naturalist, responsible for the recovery of the Empordà marshes, has had the courage to get involved, as Secretary of Ecological Transition of the Generalitat (Catalan Government), in the design and management of public policies. Responding to a question, he explained that in the not-too-distant future we will have to face a rise in sea level, but that, like the Netherlands, we will have the techniques to adapt and, in particular, to avoid losing the airport. I thought that the solution that E. Alonso, J. Coello, F. Hermosilla, G. López-Casasnovas, J. Ros, and myself have advocated—a runway on stilts in the sea—has good prospects for the future of Sargatal. His day has not yet come, but who knows if those who advocate extending the airport over the sea will be considered premature visionaries in the 22nd century.

On Monday I participated in the program In the mornings from TV3 to justify the expansion of El Prat Airport. A friend with an exceptionally well-arranged mind sent me a message saying he was surprised by my intervention and concluding that he feared that "this will end as always, with Aena and the elites doing the only thing they know how to do: attracting tourists."

The proposed expansion of the Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport once again endangers one of Catalonia's most fragile and valuable natural areas: the Llobregat Delta. Given the announcement made this week by AENA and the Generalitat (Catalan government), it is necessary to firmly oppose any project that would further impact this environment, especially while Spain is facing an infringement procedure with the European Commission (case EU-Pilot 5866/13/ENVI) for the poor management of this area.

For now, the Generalitat of Catalonia has no say in the matter. in the management of Barcelona airportThe three-way agreement between the Government, the Ministry of Transport, and Aena has not changed this situation: the €3.2 billion investment to remodel the infrastructure and extend the sea runway by 500 meters will be led by Aena, a company owned by the State, but with the first agreement proposed by the Generalitat: governance. This is a file that the Government has already opened, according to sources familiar with the matter reported to ARA, although the Department of Territory assures that there is still "no news." Promoting a new governance model for El Prat was one of the commitments that the PSC made with ERC in the investiture agreement. They emphasized their opposition to the airport's expansion. From the outset, they demand that Aena remove its "claws" from the infrastructure.

It's the news of the day: President Isla pushes ahead with the expansion of El Prat airportThe Government and Aena have reached an agreement Extend a track by 600 meters: 540 meters on the corner of Prat, next to Ricarda, and 60 meters on the Gavà side, in the Remolar area.

El Prat Airport opened the 21st century with nearly 20 million passengers, and last year reached 55 million, consolidating its position as one of the largest in Europe. This milestone was possible thanks to the expansion approved in 1999 and carried out throughout the first decade of the century, which included the construction of the sea runway and Terminal 1. Now, the airport has reached its maximum capacity, and the government of President Salvador Illa has just approved the expansion proposed by Aena for six years.

The Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and seven other Catalan business organizations have rated "very positively" theAgreement between the Generalitat (Catalan government), the Spanish government, and the state airport operator Aena to expand El Prat Airport.In a joint statement, the Chamber, the employers' association Pimec, Fira de Barcelona, ​​​​the Royal Automobile Club of Catalonia (RACC), the College of Economists of Catalonia, and the business organizations FemCat, Barcelona Global, and the Círculo de Economía have positively assessed "the project announced by the Catalan government and consider it necessary and strategic to improve intercontinental competitiveness."

The President of the Generalitat (Catalan government) personally presents the proposal for the expansion of El Prat Airport. It's consistent: Illa is a president aligned with conventional economic growth, he shares the same political affiliation as the Spanish government and the CEO of Aena, and The expansion of El Prat was included in the electoral programme and have more international connections.

The PSC government is unblocking the expansion of El Prat Airport. The president of the Generalitat (Catalan government), Salvador Illa, had his eye on this project long before taking office, and this Tuesday he announced an agreement between the government, the Ministry of Transport, and Aena (Spanish National Agency for the Environment) to implement it, with an investment of 3.2 billion euros. The project touches the sea for 500 meters, minimizing the impact on natural spaces. Catalonia, Spain, and Europe. "We can't waste any more time," he added in an appearance after receiving the report on the expansion of the joint committee between the State, the Generalitat and Aena.