Madrid, January 27, 2024 – Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced on Friday a €2.4 billion investment plan to expand Madrid Barajas International Airport. The expansion would increase the airport’s capacity to 90 million passengers per year by 2031.
Speaking at the Fitur international tourism fair in Madrid, Sánchez said the investment, the largest in a Spanish airport in the past decade, would make Madrid Barajas “one of the main airports in the European Union.”
The project, which is part of the strategic plan presented by Spain’s airport operator Aena in 2022, would allow for “significant growth in air connections” from Madrid Barajas, especially to Asia, and would create “thousands of direct and indirect jobs,” according to Sánchez.
Aena, which operates 46 airports in Spain, including Madrid Barajas, said that 60 million people passed through the Madrid airport last year. The airport has become a major hub for air traffic between Europe and Latin America.
The influx of passengers to the airport, which has undergone several expansion projects in the past, is pushing it close to its maximum capacity. Spain received a record 84 million foreign visitors last year.
