El Prat airport aspires to become a global airport, connected to the main cities on the planet, and the contribution of low-cost companies, based in Barcelona, to this purpose is and must be fundamental. The Catalan capital is immersed in a process, unprecedented in the short term, of internationalization of its airport and, therefore, the creation of new long-haul routes. To the fifty intercontinental destinations that the airport infrastructure currently supports, in the coming years there will be added others that will link the city with leading Asian enclaves, such as Shanghai, Tokyo or New Delhi, and that will help us rediscover destinations. in Latin America that were already familiar to us. The best, therefore, is yet to come.
The contribution of companies with a low-cost model to the creation of new long-haul routes in Barcelona has been and continues to be essential. And it is not because they are going to operate those flights, but because of their contribution to making them possible. Much of the traffic record reached in 2023, when it reached close to 50 million passengers (of which 36 million are international passengers), is due to the contribution of these companies. The recovery of traffic to pre-covid levels began in November of last year and was consolidated the following month, with 17.2% more passengers, thus achieving the best December in the history of El Prat.
It is a proven fact that the city of Barcelona, by itself, does not demonstrate sufficient demand to accommodate certain long-distance flights, in other words, that it needs to be supplied with passengers coming from short and medium haul. And this is where companies like Vueling can contribute. Together with Level, which operates long-haul flights from El Prat airport, we are faced with two companies called to collaborate and build a true hub for short, medium and long-haul flights at the Barcelona airport. The future can be bright if things are done well, and not only the airlines themselves should participate in this work, but also the Catalan public and private institutions, which often demand a better future for our airport, and which They are in a position to give the definitive push to the construction of a truly global airport.
But, beyond the great future strategy that we must draw up for the Prat airport, we must also be aware that the low cost contributes to positioning the Barcelona brand throughout the European continent, taking to the last corner of Europe what we makes the people of Barcelona different.
For all this, we are in luck. In the coming years, we will witness a true intercontinental “explosion” at Barcelona airport. You don't have to be a lynx to realize this. El Prat is called to be the reference airport in the Western Mediterranean, and on the path that will take us to achieve it, the contribution of companies with a low-cost model is key.
