Vitoria_Airport

Vitoria Airport

Airport in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain

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

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]

Quick Facts Vitoria Airport, Summary ...

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″N 02°43′28″W

Website

https://www.aena.es/en/vitoria.doc

Map

VIT

Location of the airport in the Basque Country

Runways

Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	ft	m	Surface
04/22	11,483	3,500	Concrete

Statistics (2023)

Passengers	309,929
Movements	14,185
Cargo (metric tons)	71,689

Source: Aena^[1]

History

In 2006 Ryanair began daily flights from London Stansted Airport,^[5] a year later it started operating flights from Dublin Airport.^[6] The airline left the airport in October 2007.^[7] Air Nostrum terminated its two daily flights to Madrid in March 2011, leaving the airport without regular flights.^[8] Helitt operated flights to Barcelona from October 2012 to January 2013,^[9] but no other airline operated regular flights to Vitoria until 2017.^[10] 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.^[10] In October 2017, twice-weekly flights to Cologne/Bonn and Seville were added,^[11] with the aim of reaching 115,000 passengers per year.^[12] Flights to Mallorca were added in April 2019,^[13] at the same time Ryanair announced plans to expand their service to the airport by 40%, with the goal of reaching 160,000 passengers.^[14] In October 2020, Ryanair decided to reinforce domestic routes by adding a twice-weekly connection to Alicante.^[15] Ryanair's commercial contract was renovated in 2020, and a new route to Charleroi was added in April 2021.^[16] Binter Canarias started operating flights to Gran Canaria and Tenerife in July 2020.^[17] Binter's route to Tenerife was terminated in March 2022,^[18] while the remaining one to Gran Canaria ended in October 2023.^[19]

Airlines and destinations

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

More information Airlines, Destinations ...

Airlines	Destinations
Ryanair	Alicante,^[15] Bergamo, Charleroi,^[20] Seville Seasonal: Cologne/Bonn,^[21] Málaga,^[22]^[23]^[24] Palma de Mallorca^[23]^[24]

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.^[25]^[26]

More information Year, passengers ...

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,^[27] 1999-2010,^[28] 2004-2023^[29]^{[lower-alpha 1]}

More information Year, cargo ...

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,^[27] 1999-2010,^[28] 2004-2023^[29]^{[lower-alpha 1]}

Public transport

A bus line connects the airport with the city. The line operates only when regular flights arrive or depart.^[30]^[31] Starting in 2024, a bus line will connect the airport with Vitoria-Gasteiz, Bilbao and Bilbao Airport.^[32]

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.^[33]

Notes

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]
"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.
[6]
"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.
[7]
"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.
[8]
López, Luis (1 December 2010). "Vitoria se queda sin vuelos regulares". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[9]
Gatón, Natxo (4 October 2014). "Helitt cierra definitivamente sin devolver el dinero a decenas de vitorianos". GasteizHoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[10]
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.
[11]
"Ryanair estrena su vuelo de Vitoria a Colonia". EITB (in Spanish). 30 October 2017. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[12]
"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.
[13]
Cuesta, Gabriel (19 November 2018). "Ryanair confirma su enlace con Mallorca desde Foronda". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[14]
"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.
[15]
"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.
[16]
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.
[17]
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.
[18]
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.
[19]
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.
[20]
"Vuelos Vitoria Bruselas". Aeropuerto de Vitoria Foronda (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[21]
Gatón, Natxo (11 February 2022). "Ryanair volará de Foronda a Bruselas a partir de marzo". GasteizHoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[22]
"Ryanair NW23 Network Changes". AeroRoutes. 17 September 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
[23]
Martín, Begoña (2 September 2023). "La drástica decisión de Ryanair para Vitoria". Noticias de Álava (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[24]
Echezarra, Saioa (2 September 2023). "Foronda reducirá varios de sus vuelos regulares durante el invierno". El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[25]
Bravo, Oier (10 January 2023). "Datos de récord en Foronda en 2022". GasteizHoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[26]
Estadísticas diciembre 2022 (Report) (in Spanish). Aena. p. 2. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[27]
"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.
[28]
Martínez Artola, Alberto. "Aeropuertos en Euskal Herria". Auñamendi Encyclopedia (in Spanish). Eusko Ikaskuntza. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[29]
"Informes anuales" (in Spanish). Aena. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[30]
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.
[31]
"Special buses to the airport". Website of the Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
[32]
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.
[33]
"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

Portals:

Spain
Aviation

This article about an airport in Spain is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Vitoria_Airport, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.