Overview
- The Aeropuerto de Santiago–Rosalía de Castro resumed operations Thursday after a 35-day, €26.6 million runway renewal that included installation of new pavement and final ILS Cat. II/III calibration flights.
- A United Airlines inaugural flight from Newark landed the same day and the carrier will operate three weekly round trips to Newark through September 21st.
- The renovation used about 73,000 tonnes of new pavement produced on-site and involved nearly 400 workers, while some night-time work on the runway will continue later in the year.
- Additional international services will roll out in the coming weeks with KLM starting Amsterdam flights on May 30th, Aer Lingus launching Cork on June 1st, and Edelweiss planning Zurich services from late June.
- Airport officials and regional leaders say the upgrades and route incentives aim to recover traffic lost after Ryanair cut its base—a drop of roughly 500,000 passengers in 2025 and about 30% early in 2026—but they warn long-term route sustainability depends on airlines' commercial decisions and competition from nearby subsidised airports.