More than 37 million people pass through Barcelona’s El Prat airport every year. Those figures mean it’s the largest airport in Spain in terms of passenger numbers and one of the biggest in the whole of Europe. Located just 15 kilometres from Barcelona city centre, the airport can be found in the town of El Prat de Llobregat.
Arriving at El Prat Airport is one of the most pleasant experiences for any holidaymaker coming to the city. Its fantastic location within easy reach of the Port of Barcelona, just 3 kilometres away in fact, means you can enjoy views of the crystal-clear blue waters of the Mediterranean as you land at either of the airport’s two terminals. The airport has 170 check-in desks, 97 gates, 43 air-bridges and 14 individual luggage carousels. Here, we’ll tell you all the most amazing facts about the airport:
– Commercial flights first began in 1927, operated by Iberia. The airline provided a direct link to Madrid’s Aeropuerto de Cuatro Vientos. Twenty-one years later, in 1948, the airport launched its first intercontinental service to New York.
– Originally, the airport was known simply as ‘Barcelona Airport’. In 2008, the local authorities in El Prat de Llobregat requested that the airport’s name be officially changed, which was finally approved on 18 June 2011.
– The airport served the city in standby-mode between the 1970s and 1990s.Bothinvestment and passenger numbers stood practically still for almost 20 years during this period until preparations for the Barcelona Olympic Games began in earnest. Since then, thanks to the remodelling and expansion works, as well as the city’s new international reputation following the Games, passenger numbers haven’t stopped climbing.
– The airport achieved record passenger numbers in August 2015, with 4,399,719 arrivals and departures.
– It’s a magnet for lost property. In 2012, 20,060 items of lost property were handed in, of which 3,695 were eventually claimed. For the most part, this includes jewellery, belts and accessories that passengers have accidentally left behind at security.
– It was the first Spanish airport to offer daily flights to Dubai.
– It’s where more than 18,000 local people come to work every day. Besides staff working for the 100 airlines that serve the airport, they also include workers at more than 80 shops and 43 restaurants in Terminals T1 and T2.
– The airport will soon offer commercial flights by helicopter. Although no official start date has been announced yet, commercial helicopter flights have been confirmed for both El Prat Airport and Adolfo Suárez Airport in Madrid. Here in Catalonia, early environmental studies have already begun, whilst the authorities in Madrid are still looking for the best location before services commence.
