Gibraltar International Airport | |||||||||||
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 New passenger terminal, withRock of Gibraltar behind it | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Military / public | ||||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||||||
| Operator | aerodrome:Royal Air Force airport terminal:Government of Gibraltar | ||||||||||
| Serves | Gibraltar (UK), and Campo de Gibraltar (Spain)[1] | ||||||||||
| Location | Gibraltar | ||||||||||
| Opened | 1959 | ||||||||||
| Time zone | Central European Time (+1) | ||||||||||
| • Summer (DST) | Central European Summer Time (+2) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 3.7 m / 12 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 36°09′04″N005°20′59″W / 36.15111°N 5.34972°W /36.15111; -5.34972 | ||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  GIB Location of airport in Gibraltar Show map of Gibraltar GIB GIB (Europe) Show map of Europe | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2022) | |||||||||||
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| Sources: WAD[2] UK Military Aeronautical Information Publication – Gibraltar.[3] | |||||||||||
Gibraltar International Airport, previously known asNorth Front Airport, (IATA:GIB,ICAO:LXGB) is the civilian airport that serves theBritish overseas territory ofGibraltar. Therunway andaerodrome is owned by theMinistry of Defence (MoD), and operated by theRoyal Air Force (RAF) asRAF Gibraltar.[3] Civilian operators use the civilian-operated terminal.National Air Traffic Services (NATS) hold the contract for provision ofair navigation services at the airport.
In2024, the civilian airport handled 424,386 passengers and 97,697 kilograms (215,385 pounds) of cargo on 3,628 total flights.[4]Winston Churchill Avenue (the main road heading towards the land border with Spain) intersects the airport runway, and in the past had to be closed for aircraft movements. Since March 2023 there is a tunnel which allows traffic to flow whilst aircraft are landing or taking off. However the tunnel does not run under the runway.[5] Pedestrians can still cross the runway when the road is open, which offers a shorter route than via the tunnel. TheHistory Channel programmeMost Extreme Airports ranked the airport the fifth most extreme airport in the world, ahead of the now-defunctKai Tak Airport with its infamous right-hand turn approach over central Hong Kong before landing, but behindPrincess Juliana International Airport, famous for its low-altitude approaches over a public beach.[6] It is exposed to strongcross winds around the 'rock' and across theBay of Gibraltar, making landings in winter particularly challenging.
Prior to its bankruptcy,Monarch Airlines was the largest operator at Gibraltar, but it enteredadministration and ceased operations in October 2017.[7] As of 2021easyJet is the largest airline operator, with the airport also being served byBritish Airways.
Although located in Gibraltar, the airport is also used by people travelling to or from neighbouring parts of southern Spain such as theCosta del Sol and theCampo de Gibraltar. The other nearby international airports areMálaga Airport, located 126 km (78 mi) north east andSeville Airport, located 203 km (126 mi) north of Gibraltar International Airport.
The first attempt of passenger air traffic from Gibraltar was made in1931 by Gibraltar Airways Ltd, using the territory'srace course on the North Frontier, however the service closed after only three and a half months.[8] The actual airport was constructed duringWorld War II upon the former race track, when Gibraltar was an important naval base for theBritish. Opened in1936, at first it was only an emergencyairfield for theRoyal Navy'sFleet Air Arm (FAA).[8] In1940, a landing strip was made and the airfield was used by theRoyal Air Force (RAF) and Fleet Air Arm, mostly for anti-U-boat patrols and convoy protection.[8] However, therunway was extended in 1942–1943 byreclaiming some land from theBay of Gibraltar using rock blasted from theRock of Gibraltar while carrying out works onmilitary tunnels.[8] By April1942, the runway was extended to 1,150 yards (3,450 feet; 1,050 metres), by November 1942 to 1,550 yards (4,650 feet; 1,420 metres), and by July1943 to 1,800 yards (5,400 feet; 1,600 metres).[8] This last major extension of the runway allowed larger aircraft to land at Gibraltar.[8]
On 3 November 2003,Monarch Airlines announced a new route from Gibraltar toManchester Airport.[9] It was the first route from Gibraltar to operate to theNorth of England. However, on 19 July 2006, Monarch withdrew the route due to the cost. On 21 April 2008, Monarch announced it would resume the services to Manchester from 12 September 2008. The route operated three to five times a week: every Monday, Wednesday and Friday in winter season, as well as on Thursdays and Sundays in the summer season.
By late 2005 and early 2006, the implementation of a new agreement was one of the main topics of theGibraltar Trilateral Forum being held between the Governments of Gibraltar, Spain, and the United Kingdom. As a result, theCórdoba Accord was signed on 18 September 2006 by all parties. This ended all discriminatory restrictions on civilian flights to Gibraltar International, including the prohibition of flights over Spanish soil, and exclusion of Gibraltar from all EU agreements on air transport, allowing civilian flights from all nations into Gibraltar International.[10]
On 17 November 2006,Iberia Airlines announced that it would start flights fromMadrid to Gibraltar using anAirbus A319 aircraft. This was a landmark move, as no Spanish airline had flown to Gibraltar since 1979, because of itsdisputed status. Iberia began flights to Gibraltar International on 16 December 2006, with a flight from Madrid that included some members of theSpanish Government on board.GB Airways flew a one-off flight in the other direction with a group of children from the Gibraltar area making up the passengers. In May 2007, GB Airways (flying as a British Airways franchisee) also began operating the route between Madrid and Gibraltar, however, this was discontinued on 30 September, leaving Iberia to work the route alone. On 22 September 2008, Iberia announced that it would cease its flights to Madrid by 28 September due to "economic reasons", namely, lack of demand. This left Gibraltar, once again, without any air links with Spain.[11]
In April 2009,Ándalus Líneas Aéreas restored Gibraltar's air link with the Spanish capital.[12] In July 2009, Ándalus also began scheduled flights toBarcelona, increasing the destinations in Spain to two.[13] However, the airline ceased to serve this route in September 2009 due to a lack of demand.[14] In April 2010, it was confirmed that Ándalus flights to and from Gibraltar had been indefinitely suspended.[15] And now yet again, Gibraltar has no direct air links to Spain. Ándalus Líneas Aéreas ceased operations on 13 August 2010.
In 2009, British Airways moved its flights from Gatwick to its main base at London Heathrow.
From 2011 until October 2012,easyJet offered thrice-weekly service from Gibraltar toLiverpool, but it was eventually dropped due to easyJet repositioning aircraft from its Liverpool base to other bases, in turn causing it to drop its least profitable routes from there, such as Gibraltar, Tallinn and Brussels.
On 18 May 2011,Bmibaby announced that it would launch flights from Gibraltar toEast Midlands Airport from 31 March 2012. This was the first time that an airline has operated that route. The route operated on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, using aBoeing 737-300. However, on 3 May 2012, it was announced that Bmibaby was to be closed by theInternational Airlines Group after the group failed to find a buyer for the airline. Bmibaby operated its last service to Gibraltar on 8 September 2012, and the airline operated its last flight the following day.
On 10 January 2012, Gibraltar was selected as one of the 'World's Scariest Airport Landings and Take-offs' in the travel section of theDaily Telegraph due to its runway which extends into the sea.[16]
On 14 August 2012, Monarch announced it would launch a new route to Birmingham, operating three times a week; every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The route began on 23 March 2013, but changed to running on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.[17]
In the summer of 2014, services between Gibraltar andMarrakech were operated byRoyal Air Maroc Express on behalf of a local travel company, Your Flight.[18] However, the services, which were operated on a charter basis, and could not be booked via global distribution system channels or on a connection basis, terminated after just three months due to insufficient demand.[19]
In November 2014,easyJet announced that it would begin a new route toBristol Airport which commenced on 19 April 2015.[20]
Royal Air Maroc (RAM) announced in November 2014 that after many years, it would restore the short intercontinental air connection between Gibraltar andTangier in March 2015 on a twice weekly basis. Unlike the previous Marrakech flights, these would be operated by RAM for themselves, and offer connecting flights to theirCasablanca hub and onwards, and be available via normal sales channels.[21]
Overnight work to resurface the runway started on the evening of 4 September 2015, and the work was completed in January 2016.
In November 2015,easyJet announced that it would begin a new route toManchester Airport twice weekly, making this the first time two airlines have competed against each other on the Manchester-Gibraltar route. The new route commenced on 3 July 2016. During the same month, Monarch announced a new route from Gibraltar to London Gatwick, beginning on 1 May running four times a week.[22]
On 2 October 2017, theCivil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed that Monarch Airlines had ceased operations with immediate effect and had entered administration. All flights were cancelled. Monarch operated about a third of the airports movements prior to shutting down.
On 12 July 2018, easyJet announced a twice-weekly new route toLondon-Luton, restoring the link between the two airports. The restored route started in December 2018.[23]
On 11 December 2019, easyJet announced a new twice-weekly service toEdinburgh, making it the first time that Gibraltar had a direct link toScotland. The route was due to start in March 2020,[24] but was delayed until 5 June 2021 by theCOVID-19 pandemic. EasyJet resumed services from Manchester on 20 July, Gatwick on 25 July, and Bristol on 4 August. The airline's service to Luton was axed as a result of the pandemic, and from increased competition byWizz Air who began serving the route in December 2020.
In October 2020,Hélity announced a new route toMálaga beginning 30 October, with flights operating three times a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.[25] The service ceased in November due to Covid restrictions.
On 4 February 2021,Eastern Airways announced two new routes toSouthampton andBirmingham from 24 and 28 May. This marked the first time that Eastern Airways were to operate scheduled flights from the airport, as well as the first ever route to Southampton and the resumption of the Birmingham service that was lost after Monarch's collapse in October 2017.[26] Both routes ceased in 2022.
June 2021 saw a new EasyJet route to Edinburgh. Other EasyJet routes being London Gatwick, London Luton, Manchester and Bristol.[27]
2023 saw EasyJet flying to London Gatwick, Manchester and Bristol.
The airport is located on theisthmus that connects Gibraltar with the rest of theIberian Peninsula, and thus the country ofSpain. Whether or not the airport's territory was ceded by theTreaty of Utrecht is disputed by Spain and the United Kingdom.[28] In the spring of 1815, Spain claims an epidemic ofyellow fever struck Gibraltar, so that the British authorities built several barracks as fieldisolation in the neutral zone. On 20 April 1815, the Lt. Governor of Gibraltar,George Don, agreed with the general commander of the Campo de Gibraltar, General DonJosé María de Alós, that "a large proportion of the inhabitants [of Gibraltar] to [..] not [have] they suffered fever, temporarily established on the neutral ground, as close as circumstances permit, in front of this fortress".[citation needed]
Spain's continuingsovereignty dispute with the United Kingdom over the territory on which the airport stands (different from thegeneric one on Gibraltar itself) has seriously affected the airport's operations. On 2 December 1987, anagreement was signed between the governments of the United Kingdom and Spain to allow the joint civil use of the airport.[29] The agreement foresaw the building of a new terminal in the neighbouring Spanish municipality ofLa Línea de la Concepción adjacent to the northern side of the existing frontier. However, the agreement was blocked by theGovernment of Gibraltar, led from 1988 byJoe Bossano. As a result, the agreement was never implemented.
Since then, Spain successfully excluded Gibraltar fromEuropean-wide de-regulation initiatives, such as theSingle European Sky programme, preventing direct links from Gibraltar to theEuropean Union (EU), on the grounds that regulation would recognises thesovereignty of the Gibraltar government (and by extension the UK) over the disputed land border.[citation needed]
There is one passenger terminal at Gibraltar International.[30]
The original terminal at the airport was built in 1959, and refurbished in the late 1990s. For many years, it had been too small to cope with the number of passengers when two flights were scheduled to arrive or depart within a short space of time. The size of the terminal was 20,000 square metres (220,000 square feet), and it had ten check-in desks, onebaggage carousel, one security gate, and two departure gates. On 26 November 2011, arriving flights switched to the new terminal as the first phase opened. On 25 September 2012, the old terminal closed its doors. The last flight to use it waseasyJet flight EZY8904 toLondon-Gatwick. The old terminal building was demolished in February 2014.
A new terminal was constructed at Gibraltar International due to increasing numbers of passengers.[31] Planning permission was announced in 2007, with construction of the new terminal beginning in 2009 and completed in 2011. The first phase of the new terminal opened on 26 November 2011 for arriving flights only. The second phase of the new terminal opened on 26 September 2012 when flight departures moved. The first flight to use the first phase waseasyJet flight EZY7295 from Liverpool, and the first flight to use the second phase wasBritish Airways flight BA491 toLondon Heathrow. The terminal's terrace was inaugurated by theEarl of Wessex,Prince Edward on 13 June 2012.[32]
This new terminal is 35,000 square metres (380,000 square feet), which is 15,000 square metres (160,000 square feet) larger than the old terminal. It has two baggage carousels and three departure gates, none of which are equipped withjet bridges. It has a capacity of up to 1.5 million passengers per year. Retail services are also available in the terminal, and these includeWH Smith, 36 North Bar, and Gibraltar Duty Free Stores. A new general aviation area has also been built inside the terminal to handle private aircraft.
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Since the construction of the airport runway across it in the 1940s,Winston Churchill Avenue – the main road in and out of Gibraltar – has crossed the airport runway. This has caused delays and tailbacks as the road closes when aircraft take off and land (more than 15 times per day).[33] Consequently, a bypass tunnel was proposed, to allow traffic to pass under the runway at all times.[34]
In the late 2000s, a project to build a tunnel and a four-lane diversion road was approved by the Government of Gibraltar. The construction contract was signed in November 2008 byChief Minister Sir Peter Caruana.[35] With a cost around £30 million, the project was planned for completion in 2010.[36]
Construction on the project began in December 2008.[36] By the contracted completion date, only 25% of the project had been completed.[36] In July 2011, the Government terminated the contract alleging the contractorObrascón Huarte Lain (OHL) had failed to comply with the contract.[36] In May 2012, the contractor took the Government to court, alleging wrongful termination of the contract, and sought £6.5 million in damages.[37] In April 2014, theHigh Court of Justice of England and Wales ordered the contractor to pay the completion costs of the project.[37]
In June 2016, the Government and OHL reached a settlement, with OHL agreeing to complete the project at a price of £24 million, with a completion date of November 2018.[38] Further construction delays owing to sub-standard work[39] meant that the tunnel was not handed over to the Government until summer 2022.[40] Testing and commissioning of various tunnel systems followed, including working with emergency services.[41] The final cost of the project was £34 million.[42]
On 31 March 2023, at one minute past midnight, the new road and tunnel access route to Gibraltar was opened to the public, and vehicular access across the runway was closed.[43] The road was named 'Kingsway' in an inauguration ceremony byChief Minister Fabian Picardo the day before.[44][45] The naming of the road had been approved byCharles III.[46]
Kingsway passes under the new terminal and towards the eastern edge of the runway, at which point, it passes through a 350-metre (1,150 ft) tunnel[47] under it and connects via aroundabout withDevil's Tower Road on the opposite side of the runway. After the tunnel on the north side of the runway, Kingsway runs parallel to the frontier, passing under the air terminal fly-over section. The road then branches into two, with one road leading to the loop and the frontier, and another leading to the Air Terminal, North Front, and Winston Churchill Avenue.[48] A dedicated tunnel for use by pedestrians, cyclists and e-scooters is also provided on a higher elevation alongside the road tunnel. The total length of the new road is approximately 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi).[47]
Although the road across the runway remains in place, for exceptional, specific, or emergency use, it is not available for routine day-to-day use by private vehicular traffic. Pedestrians are not required to travel via the new tunnel, and can continue to cross the runway.
A number ofcar parks are being built at Gibraltar International during its expansion, including a new 220-space, three-story car park located at the east of the new terminal. Another new car park is to be built byEastern Beach, and two multi-storey facilities will also be built on Devil's Tower Road.[48]
The following airlines operate regular scheduled flights at Gibraltar Airport:
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| British Airways | London–Heathrow[49] |
| easyJet | Birmingham,[50][51]Bristol,[52]London–Gatwick,[52]Manchester[52] |
| passengers | aircraft movements | cargo (tonnes) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 378,603 | 3,958 | 624 |
| 2009 | 371,231 | 4,290 | 313 |
| 2010 | 305,325 | 3,346 | 296 |
| 2011 | 383,013 | 3,628 | 292 |
| 2012 | 387,219 | 3,490 | 314 |
| 2013 | 383,876 | 3,564 | 352 |
| 2014 | 415,103 | 3,730 | 384 |
| 2015 | 444,336 | 4,100 | 408 |
| 2016 | 548,230 | 4,968 | 404 |
| 2017 | 571,184 | 4,888 | 302 |
| 2018 | 440,998 | 3,868 | 192 |
| 2019 | 491,405 | 4,382 | 203 |
| 2020 | 186,069 | 2,290 | 175 |
| 2021 | 262,522 | 3,270 | 111 |
| 2022 | 446,187 | 3,868 | 121 |
| 2023 | 473,803 | 4,082 | 93 |
| 2024 | 424,386 | 3,628 | 98 |
| Source: Gibraltar Airport Statistics[4] | |||
| rank | airport | total passengers | change 2023 / 24 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London–Heathrow | 193,714 |  12% |
| 2 | London–Gatwick | 130,689 |  19% |
| 3 | Manchester | 68,615 | 26% |
| 4 | Bristol | 31,038 | 29% |
The runway featured in aBBCTop Gear special, and was also used byJaguar in the launch of a new range. A custom paintedBoeing 737 was used in conjunction with a fleet of the cars. The airport appeared onChannel 5's series,Gibraltar: Britain in the Sun, which was broadcast from June to July 2013.
The airstrip and the Four Corners Border crossing feature at the end ofCarol Reed's 1963 production ofThe Running Man. Several 'takes' were shot as Remick and Harvey chase each other, firstly through the border and later as the light aircraft took off from the eastern end of the runway, narrowly missing anRAF Halifax aircraft which was supposed to be taking off too.[59]
The airport is located on the border and has been long been the subject of competing claims. Spain says the land wasn't ceded under the Utrecht Treaty of 1713
Prior to the tunnel opening, Winston Churchill Avenue is the only road linking Gibraltar to neighbouring Spain. The Gibraltar Airport runway was built across it in 1941, and incorporated vehicular and pedestrian routes to and from the frontier. In recent years, the road was closed more than 15 times a day to allow flights to take-off and land.
The original contract was signed in November 2008 by the then Chief Minister Sir Peter Caruana.
The final cost of the tunnel was £34 million, but if it would be built it today it would cost £120 million, the Chief Minister said.
that the airport and tunnel access roads [and the tunnel]...will be known as Kingsway...and that has been approved by His Majesty himself today
The road from the new roundabout at Devil's Tower Road to the East Gate roundabout is approximately 1.2km in length, including approximately 350 metres of covered tunnel.
Media related toGibraltar Airport at Wikimedia Commons
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