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Barcelona International Airport

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BCN redirects here. For other uses, see BCN (disambiguation)

Barcelona International Airport
(El Prat)
IATA: BCN - ICAO: LEBL
Summary

<tr><th colspan="2" align="left" valign="top">Airport type</th><td colspan="2" valign="top">Public</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" align="left" valign="top">Operator</th><td colspan="2" valign="top">Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea (AENA)</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" align="left" valign="top">Serves</th><td colspan="2" valign="top">Barcelona, Spain</td></tr>

Elevation AMSL12 ft (3.8 m)
Coordinates41°17′49″N, 2°04′02″E
Runways
DirectionLengthSurface
ftm
7L/25R12,2813,743Concrete
7R/25L8,7272,660Asphalt
2/208.3342,540Asphalt
Barcelona International Airport:Interior view of the airport
Enlarge
Interior view of the airport

Barcelona International Airport (IATA: BCN, ICAO: LEBL) known as El Prat is an airport that serves Barcelona, Spain. It is located 10 km away at the town of El Prat de Llobregat.

Barcelona El Prat Airport is Spain's second largest airport after Madrid Barajas International Airport. It is the largest airport on the country's Mediterranean coast, and it is a hub for Spanair as well as low cost carrier: Vueling Airlines and it is a focus city for Air Europa, Air Madrid and Iberia Airlines. El Prat is the main airport for the city of Barcelona. Its domestic flights are mostly operated by Iberia and Spanair. The airport also serves many European destinations.

Currently Barcelona El Prat Airport is undergoing a huge expansion , with the construction of a new south terminal, between terminals , expected to enter into operation in 2008.

During 2005, 27,131,445 passengers used El Prat Barcelona airport and it is due to exceed 30 million passengers in 2006.

The Barcelona - Madrid air route, called "Puente Aereo" (Air Bridge), is the busiest in the world.[1]



Contents

History

Barcelona's first airfield was located at el Remolar, and began operations in 1916, however, it did not have good expansion prospects, and the new airport at el Prat was opened in 1918. The first flight was a Latecoere Salmson 300 which arrived from Toulouse. The airport was used as a base for the Spanish Navy's Zeppelin fleet. Scheduled commercial service began in 1927 with Iberia's service to Madrid.

In 1948, the first overseas service was operated by Pan American World Airways to New York, using a Lockheed Constellation. A new control tower was built in 1965, a new terminal was built in 1968. (It is presently the older wing of Terminal B.)

The airport underwent a major development in preparation for the 1992 Summer Olympics with the construction of a new terminal (designed by Ricardo Bofill).

Since then, significant increases in passenger numbers have necesitated the need for further expansion including a new terminal building (also designed by Ricardo Bofill) and control tower. An additional runway (07R/25L) has been built. Once these developments are complete, the airport will be capable of handling between 40 million and 55 million passengers annually (compare to 27.1 million passengers in 2005). The airport is slated to expand in area from 8.45 to 15.33 km² by 2007.

Transport

The airport is accessible by Renfe commuter train on the C10 line, which runs from Estació de França, with a major stop at Sants train station, providing transfer to the Barcelona Metro system. A scheduled bus line, Aerobús, is also available from Plaça Catalunya, which stops at Sants and Plaça d'Espanya. Taxi stops are available at each terminal. The C-32B highway connects the airport to a main traffic interchange between Barcelona's Ronda de Dalt beltway and major highways. Parking capacity was expanded in 2003 and 2004.

As part of the major expansion above, a new train station will be built nearby, connecting the airport to the Spanish AVE network, and to both Line 2 and Line 9 of the Barcelona Metro.

Airlines and destinations

Cargo airline services are provided by:

References

Categories


Airports in Catalonia | Barcelona province

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