The Canary Island of Lanzarote has been a hotspot for European holidaymakers for decades. While COVID-19 has thrown a temporary spanner in the works, its popularity – especially with aviation enthusiasts – is set to soar once again post-pandemic, as Tom Batchelor finds out
Sandwiched between Lanzarote’s sparse, volcanic interior and the Atlantic Ocean sits César Manrique airport, the Canary Islands’ third busiest gateway by passenger numbers. It is a dramatic location; to the south, steep, rocky mountains plunge to the sea, while just four miles to the north lies the island’s capital, Arrecife.
The complex attracts an alluring mix of aircraft types, from the ubiquitous inter-island ATR turboprops to chartered widebody jets. Added to the regular traffic are occasional ferry flights delivering aircraft from the Airbus and ATR factories in Toulouse to destinations in Central and South America (the role is reversed for Brazilian-built Embraer jets), plus military activity and an occasional general aviation flight.
In 2019, the airport handled more than seven million passengers, making it Spain’s 11th busiest, ahead of Bilbao, Tenerife North and Menorca. For an island with approximately 150,000 inhabitants, that is a remarkable feat.
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