Running with the Bulls

Sebastian Schmitz travels to Pamplona to find out how the city’s quaint airport, once decimated by airline failures and mounting regional competition, is bouncing back.

PAMPLONA

For many, the name Pamplona evokes images of bulls thundering down the cobblestones through the centre of town in pursuit of white-clad runners. The Encierro (or Running of the Bulls) is a highlight of the San Fermín festival and a major tourist attraction for the otherwise sleepy northern Spanish city, which nestles in the Navarre region between the French border and the Pyrenees mountains to the north and the Ebro river valley to the south.

Linking Pamplona

The city, also known by its Basque name Iruña, is served by the small Pamplona Airport (IATA code: PNA, ICAO code: LEPP), which lies around four miles (6km) south of the city centre near the settlement of Noáin.

Flying under the Iberia Regional banner, Air Nostrum operates five daily services from Madrid each weekday.

Airport Statistics

IATA code: PNA

ICAO code: LEPP

Location: N42°46’20’’, W1°38’78’’

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