They are airports within airports. Segregated, discreet terminals and far from the intensity of the large air stations. The exponential growth of business aviation in recent years is not only visible in the air, with increasingly sophisticated and longer-range aircraft models. Private terminals are the answer to this expansion and in Spanish airports there are several examples of another way of flying: Barcelona, Eivissa, Madrid, Málaga, Valencia or Palma have theirs.
“Private aviation passengers fly in exclusive jets and are destined for a luxury hotel, or a villa, where they arrive in a high-end car. The airport part cannot be lame, hence the need for specific terminals”, says Jordi Ibáñez Villanueva, a professional with extensive experience in the aeronautical sector, especially in the private aviation sector.
For years it has served VIP passengers at the Barcelona airport: from politicians of the highest rank to elite athletes, musicians, celebrities of all walks of life, magnates with well-known or anonymous names. Flying in private planes, all of them have had preferential, discreet and calm treatment during their time at the airport, which is usually brief, as this is one of the keys to the sector: upon arrival, transfer from the plane to the car towards the final destination. with only a small displacement and when leaving, arrive just a few minutes before at the corporate terminal and board.
Private jets can operate at any airport on the peninsula or the islands, although due to the volume of private operations there are some that have a specific building built by Aena that is licensed to specialized companies such as the multinational Universal Aviation, present in ten Spanish airports, among them Barcelona, Madrid, Malaga or Ciudad Real. In the latter, one of the few not managed by Aena, Universal has an elegant private waiting room for travelers who arrive in Castilla La Mancha for hunting reasons.
Another of the international brands that manages private terminals in Spain is Skyvalet, present in nine Spanish airports, including the four leaders in private aviation: Madrid, Barcelona, Eivissa and Palma. The first two mix business and leisure aviation traffic, while those in the Balearic Islands receive more VIP vacation clientele, although the executive profile is always present. There, discretion, speed, comfort and that everything is easy and impeccable for passengers and crews prevail.
The employees of operations, customer service and their aircraft are true achievers of everything necessary, since in reality they are the closest thing to a luxury hotel Concierge service working in an airport terminal: from the documentary preparation of the flight, to the choice of catering, coordination with land transport or accommodation management if necessary. Everything at the moment, punctual and tailored to each one.
In Eivissa and Mallorca, two local companies stand out: Ibizair and Mallorcair. The first has been operating for 20 years and has assumed the exponential increase in VIP flights to the island in recent years. It operates from the old terminal, today converted into a comfortable exclusive area for private jet users.
In Palma, the Ferrer and Mudoy families founded in 1991 what would be the closest thing to a private aviation boutique. Today they manage their own elegant 300m2 terminal whose interior design is the work of Marga Comas and is decorated with works by Gallery Red, one of the terminal's collaborating firms, together with the German firm Engel
