- Lisbon airport capacity constraints described as entirely artificial
- Lisbon handles approximately 26m passengers annually with one runway
- New airport at Alcochete described as bonkers at 100 kilometres from Lisbon
- Montijo could become civilian second airport at cost of approximately €120m
- Slots used at 95pc to 97pc at congested European airports
Michael O’Leary of Ryanair is describing Lisbon airport capacity constraints as entirely artificial during the Airlines for Europe briefing in Brussels. Lisbon handles approximately 26m passengers annually with one runway. Gatwick handles 60m passengers annually with one runway.
O’Leary shared that capacity could be readily increased with terminal building capacity rising dramatically. He shared that restraining capacity at Portela protected TAP from competition from low-fares airlines. The new airport at Alcochete was described as bonkers at 100 kilometres from Lisbon. Montijo could be converted into a civilian second airport at a cost of approximately €120m.
Ben Smith of Air France-KLM and Carsten Spohr of Lufthansa shared that capacity constraints were not unique to Lisbon. Paris Orly was artificially constrained and Amsterdam Schiphol faced similar issues. Ourania Georgoutsakou shared that slots were being used at 95pc to 97pc at congested airports and 90pc across Europe. She shared that Airport Charges Directive revision was needed for transparency at monopolistic airports.
Michael O’Leary shared: There’s really no capacity constraint in Lisbon airport that couldn’t be resolved by some sensible expansion of the existing terminal facilities. The capacity constraints in Lisbon are entirely artificial. They are not a runway constraint. Lisbon does about 26 million passengers a year with one runway. Gatwick does 60 million passengers a year with one runway. So it could be readily increased, particularly given that capacity at terminal buildings is increasing dramatically now because fewer passengers are carrying bags, there’s less queuing time at check-in, and we’re increasingly using kiosks. Restraining capacity at Portela has been a way for the Portuguese government to protect TAP from real competition from low-fares airlines like Ryanair and easyJet, who can’t expand in Portela because we can’t get additional slots. The new airport at Alcochete is bonkers, 100 kilometres away from Lisbon. They’re planning to open it sometime around 2039, but they’re proposing to allow ANA to increase the airport charges now so they can pre-fund this white elephant for about the next 15 years. There is a second airport in Lisbon, it’s called Montijo. It is in the centre of the city, it is a military airport at the moment, and it could be converted into a civilian second airport for Lisbon at a cost of about €120 million. But remarkably your government doesn’t want to promote low-cost efficient terminal developments in Lisbon at the moment.
Ben Smith shared: it’s not unique to Lisbon. We deal with the same issue at Paris Orly, which is artificially constrained, and we have the same issue which was recently imposed at Amsterdam Schiphol. So it’s not unique to Lisbon. We’re awaiting a decision by the Portuguese state and we’ll know that in the next week or so.
Rania Georgoutsakou shared: In Brussels this has turned into a discussion around whether we need to reform slots in order to create more capacity. Slots are being used across Europe, especially in congested airports, at 95–97pc, across Europe at 90pc. So this idea of redoing the slot system will not make capacity appear out of thin air. What matters is the cost of airport charges and making sure that the money is being spent in a way which really helps keep capacity and optimise efficiency and processes. That’s why Airlines for Europe is calling for a revision of the Airport Charges Directive to make sure that transparency is there in the bigger, more monopolistic airports which tend to dictate charges.
