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Madrid–Barajas Airport
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Madrid–Barajas Airport
Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (IATA: MAD, ICAO: LEMD) is the main international airport serving Madrid, the capital of Spain, and its metropolitan area. At 3,050 ha (7,500 acres; 30.5 km2) in area, it is the second-largest airport in Europe by physical size behind Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. In 2019, 61.8 million passengers travelled through Madrid–Barajas, making it the country's busiest airport as well as Europe's fifth-busiest.
The airport opened in 1931 and has grown to be one of Europe's most important aviation centres. Within the city limits of Madrid, it is 9 km (5.6 mi) from the city's financial district and 13 km (8.1 mi) northeast of the Puerta del Sol or Plaza Mayor de Madrid, Madrid's historic centre. The airport name derives from the adjacent district of Barajas, which has its metro station on the same rail line serving the airport. Barajas serves as the gateway to the Iberian Peninsula from the rest of Europe and the world and is a key link between Europe and Latin America. Following the death of the first Spanish Prime Minister after Francisco Franco's dictatorship, Adolfo Suárez, in 2014, the Spanish Ministry of Public Works and Transport announced that the airport was to be renamed Aeropuerto Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas. The airport is the primary hub and maintenance base for Iberia, Iberia Express, Iberia Regional, Air Europa, Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas and World2Fly. Consequently, Iberia is responsible for more than 40% of Barajas' traffic. The airport has five passenger terminals: T1, T2, T3, T4 and T4S.
The airport was constructed in 1927, opening to domestic and international air traffic on 22 April 1931, although regular commercial operations began two years later. A small terminal was constructed with a capacity for 30,000 passengers a year, in addition to several hangars and the building of the Avión Club. The first regular flight was established by Lineas Aéreas Postales Españolas (LAPE) with its route to Barcelona. In the 1930s, flights started to serve some European and African destinations, the first international flights from the airport.
Originally, the flight field was a large circle bordered in white with the name of Madrid in its interior, unpaved, consisting of land covered with natural grass. It was not until the 1940s that the flight field was paved and new runways were designed. The first runway which started operation in 1944 was 1,400 m (4,600 ft) long and 45 m (148 ft) wide. By the end of the decade the airport had three runways, none of which exist today. In the late 1940s, scheduled flights to Latin America and the Philippines started.
In the 1950s, the airport supported over half a million passengers, increasing to five runways and scheduled flights to New York City began. The National Terminal, currently T2, began construction in 1954 and opened later that year. In the Plan of Airports of 1957, Barajas Airport is classified as a first-class international airport. By the 1970s, large jets were landing at Barajas, and the growth of traffic mainly as a result of tourism exceeded forecasts. At the beginning of the decade, the airport reached the 1.2 million passengers, double that envisaged in the Plan of Airports of 1957.
In the 1970s, with the boom in tourism and the arrival of the Boeing 747, the airport reached 4 million passengers and began the construction of the international terminal (current T1). In 1974, Iberia, L.A.E. introduced the shuttle service between Madrid and Barcelona, a service with multiple daily frequencies and available without prior reservation.
The 1982 FIFA World Cup brought significant expansion and modernisation of the airport's two existing terminals.
In the 1990s, the airport expanded further. In 1994, the first cargo terminal was constructed and the control tower was renovated. In 1997, it opened the North Dock, which is used as an exclusive terminal for Iberia's Schengen flights. In 1998, it inaugurated a new control tower, 71 m (233 ft) tall and then in 1999 the new South Dock opened, which implies an expansion of the international terminal. During this time, the distribution of the terminals changed: The south dock and most of the International Terminal were now called T1, the rest of the International Terminal and Domestic Terminal were now called T2 and the north dock was called T3.
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Madrid–Barajas Airport
Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (IATA: MAD, ICAO: LEMD) is the main international airport serving Madrid, the capital of Spain, and its metropolitan area. At 3,050 ha (7,500 acres; 30.5 km2) in area, it is the second-largest airport in Europe by physical size behind Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. In 2019, 61.8 million passengers travelled through Madrid–Barajas, making it the country's busiest airport as well as Europe's fifth-busiest.
The airport opened in 1931 and has grown to be one of Europe's most important aviation centres. Within the city limits of Madrid, it is 9 km (5.6 mi) from the city's financial district and 13 km (8.1 mi) northeast of the Puerta del Sol or Plaza Mayor de Madrid, Madrid's historic centre. The airport name derives from the adjacent district of Barajas, which has its metro station on the same rail line serving the airport. Barajas serves as the gateway to the Iberian Peninsula from the rest of Europe and the world and is a key link between Europe and Latin America. Following the death of the first Spanish Prime Minister after Francisco Franco's dictatorship, Adolfo Suárez, in 2014, the Spanish Ministry of Public Works and Transport announced that the airport was to be renamed Aeropuerto Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas. The airport is the primary hub and maintenance base for Iberia, Iberia Express, Iberia Regional, Air Europa, Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas and World2Fly. Consequently, Iberia is responsible for more than 40% of Barajas' traffic. The airport has five passenger terminals: T1, T2, T3, T4 and T4S.
The airport was constructed in 1927, opening to domestic and international air traffic on 22 April 1931, although regular commercial operations began two years later. A small terminal was constructed with a capacity for 30,000 passengers a year, in addition to several hangars and the building of the Avión Club. The first regular flight was established by Lineas Aéreas Postales Españolas (LAPE) with its route to Barcelona. In the 1930s, flights started to serve some European and African destinations, the first international flights from the airport.
Originally, the flight field was a large circle bordered in white with the name of Madrid in its interior, unpaved, consisting of land covered with natural grass. It was not until the 1940s that the flight field was paved and new runways were designed. The first runway which started operation in 1944 was 1,400 m (4,600 ft) long and 45 m (148 ft) wide. By the end of the decade the airport had three runways, none of which exist today. In the late 1940s, scheduled flights to Latin America and the Philippines started.
In the 1950s, the airport supported over half a million passengers, increasing to five runways and scheduled flights to New York City began. The National Terminal, currently T2, began construction in 1954 and opened later that year. In the Plan of Airports of 1957, Barajas Airport is classified as a first-class international airport. By the 1970s, large jets were landing at Barajas, and the growth of traffic mainly as a result of tourism exceeded forecasts. At the beginning of the decade, the airport reached the 1.2 million passengers, double that envisaged in the Plan of Airports of 1957.
In the 1970s, with the boom in tourism and the arrival of the Boeing 747, the airport reached 4 million passengers and began the construction of the international terminal (current T1). In 1974, Iberia, L.A.E. introduced the shuttle service between Madrid and Barcelona, a service with multiple daily frequencies and available without prior reservation.
The 1982 FIFA World Cup brought significant expansion and modernisation of the airport's two existing terminals.
In the 1990s, the airport expanded further. In 1994, the first cargo terminal was constructed and the control tower was renovated. In 1997, it opened the North Dock, which is used as an exclusive terminal for Iberia's Schengen flights. In 1998, it inaugurated a new control tower, 71 m (233 ft) tall and then in 1999 the new South Dock opened, which implies an expansion of the international terminal. During this time, the distribution of the terminals changed: The south dock and most of the International Terminal were now called T1, the rest of the International Terminal and Domestic Terminal were now called T2 and the north dock was called T3.
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