Seville Airport ( es, Aeropuerto de Sevilla) is the sixth busiest inland
airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...
in Spain. It is the main
international airport serving Western
Andalusia
Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The t ...
in southern
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, and neighbouring provinces. The airport has flight connections to 42 destinations around Europe and Northern Africa, and handled 7,544,473 passengers in 2019. It serves as a base for the low-cost carriers
Vueling
Vueling S.A. is a Spanish low-cost airline based at El Prat de Llobregat in Greater Barcelona with hubs at Barcelona–El Prat Airport (main), Paris-Orly Airport in Paris, France and Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy (second ...
and
Ryanair. It is east of central
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
, and some north-east of
Costa de la Luz
The Costa de la Luz (, "Coast of Light") is a section of the Andalusian coast in Spain facing the Atlantic. It extends from Tarifa in the south, along the coasts of the Province of Cádiz and the Province of Huelva, to the mouth of the Guadiana ...
.
The Seville airport is also known as San Pablo Airport to distinguish it from the older
Tablada airport, which was in operation as military aerodrome until 1990.
Facilities
Seville Airport is capable of handling six million passengers a year. There are 23 stands (all of them are self-maneuvering) of which 16 are remote, with 42 check-in desks and 16 boarding gates. Since its last enlargement in 1991 for the
Seville Expo '92
The Seville Expo '92 was a universal exposition that took place from Monday, April 20 to Monday, October 12, 1992, on La Isla de La Cartuja (Charterhouse Island), Seville, Spain. The theme for the expo was "The Age of Discovery", celebrating the ...
, the airport has undergone minor extension works. 2013 saw the opening of a new car parking building with five floors. It is currently being remodeled to expand its capacity to ten million passengers a year, completion of the works by 2021.
In the airport grounds, there is an Airbus factory (San Pablo Sur), an Airbus maintenance center (San Pablo Norte) and a Ryanair maintenance center.
History
In 1914, the first plane flying between the peninsula and
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
landed at the improvised
aerodrome of Tablada, which had been fitted out the previous year for an air festival. Following this, the
municipal government of
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
handed over a plot of land measuring to the Military Aeronautical Society for the construction of an aerodrome. Work on the aerodrome began in 1915 and that same year it began to be used for training pilots and observers.
In 1919, the first commercial flights were operated between Seville and Madrid. The following year, an
air postal service was established between Seville and
Larache
Larache ( ar, العرايش, al-'Araysh) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast, where the Loukkos River meets the Atlantic Ocean. Larache is one of the most important cities of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region.
Man ...
and in 1921, the first Spanish commercial service between Seville and Larache was set up. In 1923, various facilities such as
hangar
A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...
s, workshops and premises were opened and approval was given for the construction of a municipal airport in Tablada at one end of the military aerodrome airfield, measuring .
In April 1927, Unión Aérea Española established the air service Madrid-Seville-Lisbon. In February 1929, the Seville airport project was approved and in March, the Tablada aerodrome was opened to flights and air traffic. It was decided that this service would cease once the planned airport was constructed.
In 1929, the first flight was operated between Madrid and Seville and in 1930, this was extended to the
Canary Islands. In February 1931, the service between Berlin and Barcelona was extended to Seville. In December 1933,
LAPE
LAPE, Spanish Postal Airlines ''(Líneas Aéreas Postales Españolas)'', was Spain's national airline during the Second Spanish Republic.
History
LAPE, often also spelt L.A.P.E. and colloquially known as ''"Las LAPE"'', replaced CLASSA (''Compa ...
began a service between Seville and the Canary Islands.
During the
Spanish civil war
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...
, Seville became the arrival point for African troops, whilst
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
served air transport with flights between
Tetuán-Seville-
Vitoria
Vitoria or Vitória may refer to :
People
* Francisco de Vitoria (c. 1483–1546), a Spanish Renaissance theologian
* Alberto Vitoria (1956–2010), Spanish footballer
* Rui Vitória (born 1970), Portuguese retired footballer
* Steven Vitória (b ...
, Seville-
Salamanca
Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...
and Seville-Larache-
Las Palmas
Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean.
It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auto ...
.
In September 1945, work began on the new Seville transoceanic airport in the land area that occupied the old blimp mooring station, which received the last flight in 1936. The work started with construction of runways 05/23, 02/20 and 09/27. One year later, it was classified as a customs point and runways 05/23 and 02/20 were asphalted. In 1948, a goniometer was installed, the runway lighting was completed, and the runways became known as 04/22, 18/36 and 09/27. In 1956, runway 09/27 was extended and runway 18/36 became a taxiway. Tablada was relegated to serve as a military aerodrome, until its closure in 1990.
In 1957, works were carried out on the terminal building and the control tower. Seville Airport was then included in the Spanish American Agreement for the installation of a supplies base. The facilities were developed near the threshold of 04, rendering the runway out of service.
In 1965, an Instrument Landing System was installed. Between 1971 and 1975, the terminal area was renovated, the apron was extended, a new terminal building was constructed and new access roads were developed.
In 1989, with a focus on the
Seville Expo '92
The Seville Expo '92 was a universal exposition that took place from Monday, April 20 to Monday, October 12, 1992, on La Isla de La Cartuja (Charterhouse Island), Seville, Spain. The theme for the expo was "The Age of Discovery", celebrating the ...
, the apron was extended, and a new access from the national
motorway N-IV was opened; a new terminal building and a new control tower to the south of the runway were also built. The old terminal was repurposed as a cargo terminal. On 31 July, the new installations were inaugurated.
The new terminal expansion program begun in 2019 to cope with rapid passenger growth and increase its capacity to 10 million passenger by year.
Airlines and destinations
The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Seville Airport:
Statistics
Busiest routes
Passengers and movements
Ground transportation
Public transport
Urban Transport Line of Seville Airport Express connects the bus station
Plaza de Armas
The ''Plaza de Armas'' (literally Weapons Square, but better translated as Parade Square or parade ground) is the name for Latin American main squares. In the central region of Mexico this space is known as El Zócalo and in Central America as ...
, in the centre of the city with the airport. It has intermediate stops at strategic points of the city, including the
AVE
''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...
train station of
Santa Justa. The whole trip takes approximately 40 minutes. Buses run from 04.30 till 00.45.
Incidents and accidents
* On 17 October 1939 an
Ala Littoria
Ala Littoria S.A. was the Italian national airline that operated during the fascist regime in the 1930s and 1940s.
History
''Ala Littoria'' was formed by a merger of Società Aerea Mediterranea (SAM), Società Anonima Navigazione Aerea (SANA) ...
Savoia-Marchetti S.73 operating a flight with 17 to
Melilla crashed near
Málaga due to intense fog. The plane descended to have visibility and crashed into a hill. All passengers and 5 crew members were killed.
* On 18 December 1939 an
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
Junkers Ju-52 M-CABA operating a flight with 10 from
Tétouan
Tétouan ( ar, تطوان, tiṭwān, ber, ⵜⵉⵟⵟⴰⵡⴰⵏ, tiṭṭawan; es, Tetuán) is a city in northern Morocco. It lies along the Martil Valley and is one of the two major ports of Morocco on the Mediterranean Sea, a few miles so ...
crashed at sea during a storm. All passengers and crew were killed.
* On 12 October 1962 an
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
Convair CV-440 operating a flight with 18 from
Valencia Airport
Valencia Airport ( es, Aeropuerto de Valencia, ca-valencia, Aeroport de València) , also known as ''Manises Airport'', is the tenth-busiest Spanish airport in terms of passengers and second in the region after Alicante. It is situated west of ...
crashed while descending near the airport. All passengers and crew were killed.
* On 23 June 1998 an
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is an American narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
After the heavy 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter flight lengths from smaller airpo ...
operating a flight with 131 to
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
was hijacked. The hijacker told that there was a bomb in the plane and forced the crew to go to
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...
, Israel. The plane landed in
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
for refueling, while the
Spanish National Police determined that the hijacker had a
mental disorder
A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitt ...
and that there was no bomb on board. Some hours later the hijacker surrendered. No one was injured.
* On 18 March 2006 an
Air Algérie
Air Algérie SpA ( ar, الخطوط الجوية الجزائرية, ; ber, Aeriverdan idzayriyen) is the flag carrier of Algeria, with its head office in the Immeuble El-Djazair in Algiers. With flights operating from Houari Boumedienne Airpor ...
Boeing 737-600 7T-VJQ operating flight 2652 with 107 from
Tindouf
Tindouf (Berber: Tinduf, ar, تندوف) is the main town, and a commune in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Mauritanian, Western Saharan and Moroccan borders. The commune has population of around 160,000 but the census and population ...
broke his landing gear during landing and rolled over to the right side. There were 45 injured and the airport was closed for a day for clean-up.
* On 20 April 2011 a
Vueling
Vueling S.A. is a Spanish low-cost airline based at El Prat de Llobregat in Greater Barcelona with hubs at Barcelona–El Prat Airport (main), Paris-Orly Airport in Paris, France and Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy (second ...
Airbus A320-200
Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft throughout the world. The company has three divisions: '' ...
EC-GRH operating flight VY2220 with 150 from
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
to Seville aborted landing due to the nose gear stuck in a 90 degrees position the aircraft performed a low approach and the aircraft made a safe emergency landing on runway 27.
* The
2015 Seville A400M crash
On 9 May 2015, an Airbus A400M Atlas cargo plane on a test flight crashed at La Rinconada, Spain, less than from Seville Airport at around 1:00 pm local time, killing 4 of the 6 crew.
Aircraft
The aircraft, serial number MSN023, was on its fir ...
took place near to the airport.
Notes
References
External links
Official website*
*
{{authority control
Airports in Andalusia
Province of Seville
Airports established in 1914
1914 establishments in Spain