Faro Airport

Faro Airport

Aeroporto Internacional de Faro
20220909 154134 Faro Airport ex LH1163 D AIEN.jpg
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerPublic, operated by Vinci Group
OperatorANA Aeroportos de Portugal
ServesFaro, Algarve, Portugal
Focus city for
Elevation AMSL7 m / 24 ft
Coordinates37°00′52″N 007°57′57″W / 37.01444°N 7.96583°W / 37.01444; -7.96583
Websiteana.pt
Map
LPFR is located in Portugal
LPFR
LPFR
Location within Portugal
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
10/28 2,490 8,169 Asphalt
Statistics (2023)
Passengers9,640,000
Passengers change 22-23Increase 18.0%
Aircraft Movements62,709
Movements change 22-23Increase 13.0%
Sources: ANAC, Vinci, ANA, WAD

Faro International Airport (Portuguese: Aeroporto de Faro, IATA: FAO, ICAO: LPFR), officially Faro - Gago Coutinho International Airport (Aeroporto Internacional de Faro - Gago Coutinho ), is located four kilometres (two nautical miles) west of the city of Faro in Portugal. The airport opened in July 1965 being the main gateway to Faro District (the year-round resort region of the Algarve) and southwestern Spain, with nine million passengers using the facility in 2019. Since 2022, it is named after Gago Coutinho, Portuguese geographer, cartographer, naval officer, historian and aviation pioneer.

History

Arrivals area
Terminal building
Terminal building

Faro International Airport is located 4 km from Faro, the capital city of Algarve in Portugal. Situated in the southern coast of Portugal, the airport was constructed during the 1960s and inaugurated in 1965. The Portuguese Government is the owner of Faro airport although, in the 2010s, the administration was granted to Vinci Group, company winning the privatization of the portuguese airports operator - ANA Aeroportos de Portugal -which has been its operator. Along with the airports in Lisbon, Porto, Ponta Delgada, Santa Maria, Horta, Flores, Madeira, and Porto Santo, the airport's concessions to provide support to civil aviation were conceded to ANA Aeroportos de Portugal on 18 December 1998, under provisions of decree 404/98. With this concession, ANA became responsible for the planning, development and construction of future infrastructure.

Since its opening in 1966 to the 2000s, Faro airport has had two major developments: the new passenger terminal building in 1989, and its enlargement in 2001. Faced with growing traffic demand and passenger safety and satisfaction needs, the development plan for 2009–2013 saw Faro airport undergo extensive improvements to runway and infrastructure, as well as a widespread renovation of the airport terminal and commercial areas. The airport authority announced an expansion programme for Faro airport in February 2010. Phase I of the expansion started in 2010 and was completed by 2011. Phase II began in 2011 and was completed by 2013. Faro International Airport handled 5,447,200 passengers and recorded 39,789 aircraft movements in 2008. When the Phase II expansion was completed, the annual capacity of the airport increased from six million to eight million passengers. Passengers handled per hour increased to 3,000, the number of aircraft handled per hour increased to 30, and aircraft parking bays increased from 22 to 33. Additional shops and waiting areas were constructed as part of the expansion. In Phase I, new aircraft stands and taxiways were planned to be constructed. A new instrument landing system (ILS) was installed at the runway along with the installation of a glide reflection mirror. The security area at the runway was also expanded. Phase II involved the renovation of the passenger terminal and the improvement of the landside access.

As of 2019, Faro Airport is capable of handling nine million passengers a year. There are 22 stands of which 16 are remote, with 60 check-in desks and 36 boarding gates.

In June 2022 it was announced that the airport would carry Gago Coutinho's name in honour of the navigator and admiral who, in 1922, together with the aviator Sacadura Cabral, accomplished the First aerial crossing of the South Atlantic in the seaplane Lusitânia, named after the Roman Empire name for what would become Portugal. The airport name became official in September 2022. At the same time it was announced the commissioning of a solar power plant with a capacity of 3MWp, enabling to produce 30% of the airport's electricity needs, reducing CO2 emissions by more than 1,500 tonnes per year.

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled direct passenger flights at Faro Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
Aer Lingus Dublin
Seasonal: Cork
Air France Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Air Transat Toronto–Pearson
Azores Airlines Ponta Delgada (begins 2 June 2024)
British Airways London–Gatwick
Seasonal: London–City, London–Heathrow, Southampton
Seasonal charter: Derry (begins 20 May 2024), Guernsey (begins 26 May 2024)
Brussels Airlines Brussels
Chair Airlines Seasonal: Zürich
Condor Seasonal: Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig/Halle, Munich
easyJet Amsterdam, Basel/Mulhouse, Belfast–International, Bordeaux, Bristol, Geneva, Glasgow, Liverpool, London–Gatwick, London–Luton, Lyon, Manchester, Milan–Malpensa, Nantes, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Paris–Orly
Seasonal: Barcelona, Berlin, Birmingham, London–Southend, Southampton (begins 6 June 2024), Toulouse
Edelweiss Air Zürich
Eurowings Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Hannover (begins 30 April 2024), Stockholm–Arlanda, Stuttgart
Seasonal: Hamburg
Finnair Helsinki
Iberia Seasonal: Madrid
Jet2.com Belfast–International, Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds/Bradford, London–Stansted, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne
Seasonal: Liverpool (begins 30 March 2024)
Lufthansa Frankfurt, Munich
Luxair Luxembourg
Marabu Seasonal: Hamburg, Munich
Norwegian Air Shuttle Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm–Arlanda
Ryanair Aarhus, Beauvais, Belfast–International, Bergamo, Berlin, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, Charleroi, Cork, Dublin, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Eindhoven, Glasgow–Prestwick, Hahn, Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, Leeds/Bradford, Liverpool, London–Luton, London–Stansted, Manchester, Memmingen, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newquay, Porto, Vienna, Weeze
Seasonal: Aberdeen, Barcelona, Bordeaux, Budapest (begins 2 June 2024), Cardiff, Cologne/Bonn, Copenhagen, Exeter, Kerry, Knock, Kraków (begins 1 April 2024), Luxembourg, Madrid, Marrakesh (begins 31 March 2024), Marseille, Norwich (begins 1 April 2024), Nuremberg, Rome–Fiumicino, Shannon, Teesside, Toulouse, Warsaw–Modlin
Scandinavian Airlines Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Stockholm–Arlanda
Seasonal: Oslo
Smartwings Seasonal: Katowice, Prague, Warsaw–Chopin
Swiss International Air Lines Seasonal: Geneva
TAP Air Portugal Lisbon
Transavia Amsterdam, Brussels, Eindhoven, Lyon, Nantes, Paris–Orly, Rotterdam/The Hague
Seasonal: Nice (begins 18 July 2024)
TUI Airways Seasonal: Birmingham, East Midlands, London–Gatwick, Manchester
TUI fly Belgium Seasonal: Brussels
TUI fly Deutschland Seasonal: Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hanover, Stuttgart
United Airlines Seasonal: Newark (begins 25 May 2024)
Volotea Seasonal: Bilbao, Brest (begins 18 April 2024), Lille, Lyon, Nantes, Strasbourg, Toulouse
Vueling Seasonal: Barcelona, Bilbao
Wizz Air Seasonal: London–Gatwick

Statistics

Aerial view.
Airport view.

Passenger numbers

Annual passenger traffic at FAO airport. See Wikidata query.
Passengers % Change
2001 4,579,459
2002 4,706,432 Increase 2.8%
2003 4,696,100 Decrease 0.2%
2004 4,658,189 Decrease 0.8%
2005 4,754,508 Increase 2.1%
2006 5,089,733 Increase 7.1%
2007 5,470,712 Increase 7.5%
2008 5,447,200 Decrease 0.4%
2009 5,062,214 Decrease 7.1%
2010 5,337,542 Increase 5.4%
2011 5,617,688 Increase 5.2%
2012 5,674,221 Increase 1.0%
2013 5,982,950 Increase 5.4%
2014 6,168,868 Increase 3.1%
2015 6,439,480 Increase 4.9%
2016 7,632,857 Increase 18.5%
2017 8,728,876 Increase 14.4%
2018 8,687,064 Decrease 0.5%
2019 9,010,860 Increase 3.7%
2020 2,208,276 Decrease 75.5%
2021 3,265,182 Increase 47.9%
2022 8,170,715 Increase 150.2%
2023 9,640,000 Increase 18.0%
Source: Pordata Vinci

Busiest routes

Busiest routes from Faro Airport (2019)
Rank City, airport Passengers %
change
Top carriers
1 United Kingdom London-Gatwick 714,769 Increase 0.3% British Airways, easyJet, TUI Airways
2 Republic of Ireland Dublin 538,500 Increase 2.3% Aer Lingus, Ryanair
3 United Kingdom Manchester 531,253 Increase 12.0% easyJet, Jet2.com, Ryanair, TUI Airways
4 United Kingdom London–Stansted 400,723 Increase 8.6% Jet2.com, Ryanair, TUI Airways
5 United Kingdom Bristol 308,963 Increase 2.1% easyJet, Ryanair, TUI Airways
6 Portugal Lisbon 291,151 Decrease 8% TAP Air Portugal
7 United Kingdom Birmingham 288,965 Increase 11.0% Jet2.com, Ryanair, TUI Airways
8 United Kingdom London-Luton 285,236 Decrease 1.8% easyJet, Ryanair, Wizz Air
9 Netherlands Amsterdam 258,293 Decrease 6.7% Corendon Dutch Airlines, Transavia
10 United Kingdom East Midlands 255,516 Increase 3.2% Jet2.com, Ryanair, TUI Airways

Ground transport

A view of the air traffic control tower of Gago Coutinho Airport.

Car

The airport is close to the A22 highway, with connections throughout the Algarve and direct to Lisbon and Spain. Faro airport has 3 different car parking areas. The closest parking area is called "Parking P0 / P1 – Classic", used for short-term visitors, while parking areas P2 and P3 are used for longer term car storage.[citation needed]

Kiss and Fly is the name for a form of fast parking at the airport.

Bus

Airport bus routes 14 and 16 run each day between Faro Airport and Faro city centre bus station. From the bus station there are connections to most other Portuguese cities as well as to many Spanish destinations. The airport bus route is currently run by a company called "Proximo".

Railway

The nearest railway station is Faro which is about 5.7 kilometres (3.5 mi) away and is located close to Faro city centre bus station. A study into a rail link to the airport was undertaken in 2018.

Taxis

Public taxis are available from the airport and operate 24/7.

Ride hailing

Ride hailing companies' services are widely available in the area.

Accolades

In 2012, Airports Council International gave Faro Airport the title of Best Improvement in Europe.[circular reference]

Accidents and incidents

  • On 21 December 1992, Martinair Flight 495 sustained a hard landing in bad weather at Faro Airport, killing 54 passengers and two crew out of a total of 340 people on board.
  • On 24 October 2011, an overnight storm collapsed portions of terminal roofs and blew out most windows in the control tower. Four people were slightly injured, one severely.

See also


This page was last updated at 2024-03-15 00:52 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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