Vitoria Airport

For the Vitória Airport in Brazil, see Eurico de Aguiar Salles Airport.

Vitoria Airport Aeropuerto de Vitoria (Spanish) Gasteizko aireportua (Basque)
IATA: VIT ICAO: LEVT
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner/Operator	Aena
Serves	Vitoria-Gasteiz
Location	Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
Elevation  AMSL	1,682 ft / 513 m
Coordinates	42°52′58″N02°43′28″W / 42.88278°N 2.72444°W / 42.88278; -2.72444
Website	aena.es
Map
VIT Location of the airport in the Basque Country
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 04/22 11,483 3,500 Concrete
Statistics (2023)
Passengers 309,909 Passengers change 22-23 31.7% Movements 14,185 Movements change 22-23 6.3% Cargo (metric tons) 71,689
Source: Aena [1]

Vitoria Airport( IATA : VIT, ICAO : LEVT) is an airport near Vitoria-Gasteiz, in the Basque Country of Spain. It is locally known as Foronda Airport due to its proximity to the hamlet of Foronda. ^[2] The airport has one terminal with 3 gates, 7 check-in counters and 16 stands for medium and light aircraft, and a 3.5 km long CAT II/III runway. ^{[3] [4]}

History

Foundation and early years

Before the current airport was built, Vitoria-Gasteiz was served by an airfield in Salburua  [ eu ]. In 1970, due to the demographic growth of the city, the local chamber of commerce urged the provincial government of Álava  [ es ] to study the establishment of regular passenger flights. Due to the inadequacy of the existing infrastructure, preliminary studies for a new airport began in 1972. The 1976 project called for a 2,200 m (7,200 ft) runway, but eventually a 3,500 m (11,500 ft) runway was built. ^[5] The construction, which started in 1977, required the demolition of Otaza  [ es ], a hamlet which would have been too close to the runway threshold. The airport opened on 16 February 1980. ^[6]

The provincial government, which had funded the construction, had envisioned the airport as the main gateway to the Basque Country. However, the initial offer of regular flights soon declined due to nearby Bilbao Airport being located closer to the main population centers. ^[6] DHL opened a logistics center at the airport in 1995.

Development since 2000

A new cargo terminal was inaugurated in 2006. ^[7]

In 2006 Ryanair began daily flights from London Stansted Airport, ^[8] a year later it started operating flights from Dublin Airport. ^[9] The airline left the airport in October 2007. ^[10] Air Nostrum terminated its two daily flights to Madrid in March 2011, leaving the airport without regular flights. ^[11] Helitt operated flights to Barcelona from October 2012 to January 2013, ^[12] but no other airline operated regular flights to Vitoria until 2017. ^[13] During this time, scheduled passenger flights were limited to charter operations during the summer season.^{[ citation needed ]} During the summer of 2015, Air Nostrum offered flights to Palma de Mallorca, Mahón and Jerez. ^{[2] [ importance? ]}

However, in 2016, Ryanair announced its return to Vitoria in March 2017 with year-round services to Bergamo and Tenerife. ^[13] In October 2017, twice-weekly flights to Cologne/Bonn and Seville were added, ^[14] with the aim of reaching 115,000 passengers per year. ^[15] Flights to Mallorca were added in April 2019, ^[16] at the same time Ryanair announced plans to expand their service to the airport by 40%, with the goal of reaching 160,000 passengers. ^[17] In October 2020, Ryanair decided to reinforce domestic routes by adding a twice-weekly connection to Alicante. ^[18] Ryanair's commercial contract was renovated in 2020, and a new route to Charleroi was added in April 2021. ^[19] Binter Canarias started operating flights to Gran Canaria and Tenerife in July 2020. ^[20] Binter's route to Tenerife was terminated in March 2022, ^[21] while the remaining one to Gran Canaria ended in October 2023. ^[22]

As of 2023, Vitoria was the fourth airport in Spain by cargo traffic. ^[23]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Vitoria Airport:

Airlines	Destinations
Ryanair	Alicante, [18] [ better source needed ] Bergamo, Charleroi, [24] [ better source needed ] Seville [ citation needed ] Seasonal: Cologne/Bonn, [25] Málaga, [26] [27] [28] Palma de Mallorca [27] [28]

Statistics

In 2019, the airport served 174,000 passengers (37% international, 63% domestic), operated 10,800 flights and processed 64,500 tons of cargo. ^[4] The airport served 235,000 passengers in 2022 (the highest number since 1993) and processed 73,600 tons of cargo, the highest number in the airport's history. ^{[29] [30]}

Passengers per year

Year passengers ±% 1980 212,080 —     1981 250,357 +18.0% 1982 263,050 +5.1% 1983 237,519 −9.7% 1984 125,353 −47.2% 1985 114,229 −8.9% 1986 121,112 +6.0% 1987 133,406 +10.2%	Year passengers ±% 1988 178,621 +33.9% 1989 257,586 +44.2% 1990 290,260 +12.7% 1991 268,089 −7.6% 1992 225,825 −15.8% 1993 248,445 +10.0% 1994 187,453 −24.5% 1995 153,259 −18.2%	Year passengers ±% 1996 143,292 −6.5% 1997 143,951 +0.5% 1998 126,921 −11.8% 1999 156,860 +23.6% 2000 124,941 −20.3% 2001 129,102 +3.3% 2002 98,962 −23.3% 2003 102,328 +3.4%	Year passengers ±% 2004 95,094 −7.1% 2005 91,594 −3.7% 2006 173,605 +89.5% 2007 173,878 +0.2% 2008 67,818 −61.0% 2009 39,933 −41.1% 2010 42,073 +5.4% 2011 28,211 −32.9%	Year passengers ±% 2012 24,389 −13.5% 2013 6,912 −71.7% 2014 7,073 +2.3% 2015 11,182 +58.1% 2016 36,902 +230.0% 2017 84,261 +128.3% 2018 140,945 +67.3% 2019 174,022 +23.5%	Year passengers ±% 2020 45,359 −73.9% 2021 128,376 +183.0% 2022 235,186 +83.2% 2023 309,929 +31.8%
Source: 1980-1999, [31] 1999-2010, [32] 2004-2023 [33] [lower-alpha 1]

Cargo per year (metric tons)

Year cargo ±% 1980 0 —     1981 235 —     1982 632 +168.9% 1983 722 +14.2% 1984 650 −10.0% 1985 704 +8.3% 1986 641 −8.9% 1987 515 −19.7%	Year cargo ±% 1988 981 +90.5% 1989 719 −26.7% 1990 534 −25.7% 1991 656 +22.8% 1992 929 +41.6% 1993 414 −55.4% 1994 1,481 +257.7% 1995 13,782 +830.6%	Year cargo ±% 1996 26,722 +93.9% 1997 31,469 +17.8% 1998 42,272 +34.3% 1999 39,926 −5.5% 2000 35,610 −10.8% 2001 36,309 +2.0% 2002 42,225 +16.3% 2003 40,156 −4.9%	Year cargo ±% 2004 43,683 +8.8% 2005 34,786 −20.4% 2006 31,576 −9.2% 2007 31,359 −0.7% 2008 34,990 +11.6% 2009 27,388 −21.7% 2010 27,961 +2.1% 2011 34,692 +24.1%	Year cargo ±% 2012 34,648 −0.1% 2013 37,482 +8.2% 2014 42,161 +12.5% 2015 46,372 +10.0% 2016 52,136 +12.4% 2017 60,479 +16.0% 2018 62,145 +2.8% 2019 64,471 +3.7%	Year cargo ±% 2020 64,335 −0.2% 2021 72,529 +12.7% 2022 73,620 +1.5% 2023 71,689 −2.6%
Source: 1980-1999, [31] 1999-2010, [32] 2004-2023 [33] [lower-alpha 1]

Public transport

• A bus line from company La Unión connects the airport with the city. The line operates only when regular flights arrive or depart. ^{[34] [35]}
• Starting in 2024, a bus line will connect the airport with Vitoria-Gasteiz, Bilbao and Bilbao Airport. ^[36]

Accidents and incidents

• On 19 May 1995, a Convair CV-580 operated by Swiftair made a wheels-up landing during a training flight. All four occupants survived, but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. ^[37]

Notes

1. The sources give a slightly different figure for the year 1999, the highest of the two is shown in the table.

References

1. Informe anual 2023 (Report) (in Spanish). Aena. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
2. Canto, Alberto (28 February 2015). "Air Nostrum unirá Foronda en verano con Palma de Mallorca, Mahón y Jerez". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 May 2021.
3. "Aeropuerto de Vitoria". Aeropuertos.net (in Spanish). 18 February 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
4. Vitoria Airport 2019 · 2020 (PDF) (Report). Aena. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
5. "Historia - Aeropuerto de Vitoria". Aena (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
6. Echeazarra, Saioa (February 2020). "Historia del aeropuerto de Vitoria - Foronda: un sueño que echó a volar en 1980". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 April 2024.
7. "DHL inauguró nueva terminal para península en aeropuerto Vitoria". El Economista (in Spanish). EFE. 24 October 2006. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
8. "Ryanair inaugura el primer vuelo barato de Vitoria a Londres el 17 de febrero". El País (in Spanish). 9 December 2005. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
9. "Ryanair gestionará 120.000 pasajeros al año con la nueva ruta que unirá Vitoria y Dublín". El Correo (in Spanish). Europa Press. 9 August 2006. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
10. "Ryanair dejará la ruta que unía el aeropuerto de Vitoria con Londres y Dublín". El Correo Gallego (in Spanish). EFE. 14 August 2007. Retrieved 10 May 2012.
11. López, Luis (1 December 2010). "Vitoria se queda sin vuelos regulares". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
12. Gatón, Natxo (4 October 2014). "Helitt cierra definitivamente sin devolver el dinero a decenas de vitorianos". GasteizHoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
13. Berdonces, Juan Carlos (10 October 2016). "Milán y Tenerife serán los primeros destinos de Ryanair desde Foronda". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
14. "Ryanair estrena su vuelo de Vitoria a Colonia". EITB (in Spanish). 30 October 2017. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
15. "Ryanair presenta su calendario de vuelos de invierno 2017 para Vitoria". Ryanair's Corporate Website (in Spanish). Ryanair. 31 March 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
16. Cuesta, Gabriel (19 November 2018). "Ryanair confirma su enlace con Mallorca desde Foronda". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
17. "Ryanair anuncia su calendario de invierno 2019 para Vitoria y aumentará su tráfico en el aeropuerto un 40%". Ryanair's Corporate Website (in Spanish). Ryanair. 5 April 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
18. "Ryanair reforzará la conectividad regional en España con 4 nuevas rutas domésticas". Ryanair's Corporate Website (in Spanish). Ryanair. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
19. Echezarra, Saioa (26 November 2020). "Ryanair volará desde Foronda 4 años más y sumará una nueva ruta a Bruselas". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
20. Echezarra, Saioa (23 June 2020). "Binter adelanta al 22 de julio sus vuelos a Tenerife desde Foronda". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
21. Carazo, Ander (22 March 2022). "Álava descontará a Binter los vuelos que «no cumpla» tras suspender la conexión con Tenerife". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
22. del Campo, José Luis; Ortega, David (13 June 2023). "Binter dejará de operar desde Foronda después del verano". Noticias de Álava (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
23. dos Santos, Jon (8 January 2024). "Así se vive Foronda desde la torre de control". Cadena SER (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 April 2024.
24. "Vuelos Vitoria Bruselas". Aeropuerto de Vitoria Foronda (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
25. Gatón, Natxo (11 February 2022). "Ryanair volará de Foronda a Bruselas a partir de marzo". GasteizHoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
26. "Ryanair NW23 Network Changes". AeroRoutes. 17 September 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
27. Martín, Begoña (2 September 2023). "La drástica decisión de Ryanair para Vitoria". Noticias de Álava (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
28. Echezarra, Saioa (2 September 2023). "Foronda reducirá varios de sus vuelos regulares durante el invierno". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
29. Bravo, Oier (10 January 2023). "Datos de récord en Foronda en 2022". GasteizHoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
30. Estadísticas diciembre 2022 (Report) (in Spanish). Aena. p. 2. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
31. "3. Estudio de la situación actual del aeropuerto". Plan director del aeropuerto de Vitoria (PDF) (Report) (in Spanish). DGAC. pp. 23, 28. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
32. Martínez Artola, Alberto. "Aeropuertos en Euskal Herria". Auñamendi Encyclopedia (in Spanish). Eusko Ikaskuntza. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
33. "Informes anuales" (in Spanish). Aena. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
34. Carazo, Ander; Goitia, Jon Ander (17 April 2022). "La afluencia por Semana Santa y la escasez de buses desbordan el parking de Foronda". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
35. "Special buses to the airport". Website of the Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
36. Echezarra, Saioa (10 October 2022). "Álava y Bizkaia gestionarán los autobuses entre las capitales y abrirán una línea Vitoria-Loiu en 2024". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 September 2023.
37. "ASN Aircraft accident Convair CV-580F SCD EC-899 Vitoria Airport (VIT)". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 4 September 2023.

External links

• Media related to Vitoria-Gasteiz Airport at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website