Airport type Public / Military Location San Javier, Spain Website aena-aeropuertos.es Elevation 3.35 m Phone +34 902 40 47 04 | Operator ENAIRE Elevation AMSL 11 ft / 3.4 m Code MJV Province Region of Murcia Owner ENAIRE | |
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Serves Murcia and Cartagena, Spain Address Ctra. del Aeropuerto, s/n, 30720 Santiago de la Ribera, Murcia, Spain | ||
Murcia-San Javier Airport (IATA: MJV, ICAO: LELC) is a military air base and civilian passenger airport located in San Javier, 17 miles (27 km) southeast of Murcia, Spain. It is operated by ENAIRE, the Spanish airport authority.
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Operations
The airport can handle aircraft up to the size of a Boeing 757. It has Category 5 fire cover by the IATA, and also has one ambulance available. Murcia is a popular destination for charter groups, and the airport is served by several charter airlines.
The military air base dates back to at least the early 1930s and is located at the northern end of the airport. It is used chiefly by Spanish Air Force piston and jet-engined training aircraft, including a well-known formation aerobatic display team which can often be seen practicing over the nearby Mar Menor. The military uses its own separate parallel runway and air traffic control tower with its glass windows.
In recent years, Murcia Airport has become much busier thanks to the arrival of several low-cost airlines. According to Aena, passenger numbers jumped from 88,608 in 1995 to 1,181,490 passengers in 2012.
Replacement
The airport invested in a new €60 million runway and terminal buildings around 2004 to 2011 In November 2011, the Minister of Public Works Antonio Sevilla, and Secretary of State for Transport Isaías Táboas, signed an official agreement that effectively proposed to close the airport to civilian air traffic from 2012. However, the airport remains open. San Javier passenger numbers are falling with growing uncertainty about the new airport at Corvera. However, in the week of 13 December 2015: the Employment, Economy and Tourism Minister told the Spanish radio, Cadena Sur, Corvera airport "will open in 2017", having returned from an important regional committee meeting with Corvera dominating the talks.
Ever since 2012, Spanish media has been speculating about when Corvera airport will open. However, in mid-August 2016, Tumbit reported that Murcianos do not think Corvera airport will ever open. There seems to be two sides to the story once again - with the regional government reiterating the airport is "months from opening" but AENA are now showing their full commitment and support towards San Javier instead of Corvera. In early September 2016, Murcia Today reported that local businesses close to the new international airport at Corvera do not think it will open until 2018 at the earliest, this is because of the long-running dispute between the contractors and the Murcian government. In early 2017, the workers at San-Javier airport went to Congress to launch a bid to keep their jobs and to urge the government not to open Corvera Airport, which is supported by AENA as well, who said opening the new airport is 'unviable'.
Airlines and destinations
The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights to and from Murcia: