Spanish ‘ghost airport’ reinvents itself as park for idle jets
Spain’s Ciudad Real airport had become almost obsolete before the Covid-19 outbreak, operating mainly as a drop-off point for hunting enthusiasts keen to visit the region’s renowned country estates.
The arrival of the coronavirus ended even that trickle of demand, tearing up the growth plans of the owner, CR International Airport SL. But rather than face the prospect of collapse, the company reinvented the hub as a home for grounded planes, with capacity to store as many as 300 through a series of renovation projects.
“When the pandemic hit, right after the end of the the hunting season in February, we received dozens of requests to stow planes,” said Francisco Luna, chief executive officer at CR International, which bought Ciudad Real in 2016.
