Puebla International Airport must overcome its underutilization during the current administration, as it cannot continue with only 22 operations per day, when its capacity should be up to 18 flights per hour. Furthermore, it can become an alternate terminal for Mexico City, according to the state Secretary of Economic Development and Labor, Víctor Gabriel Chedraui.
He explained that they are holding ongoing meetings with national and international airlines to establish attractive commercial routes, which should not remain an attempt but a permanent one.
Almost 40 years after its inauguration on November 18, 1985, the Hermanos Serdán Airport, located in the municipality of Huejotzingo, 5 minutes from the Mexico-Puebla highway, has received significant federal investments in the last three years, totaling 371.7 million pesos, from 2022 to 2024.
In 2022, the first federal investment for the Puebla airport was 112.8 million pesos for modernization; 166.5 million pesos in 2023; and 92.4 million pesos in 2024.
In this context, the state secretary commented that the six-year plan is to provide “significant mobility to the Puebla airport, which will serve as an alternative to the Mexico City airport for domestic and international flights.”
That means, he said, that residents of the south-southeast can come to Puebla to travel to other parts of the country without having to go to the capital. “It would be good for people from the south-southeast to come to Puebla to travel to other destinations without having to go to Mexico City, where road construction can cause delays in getting to the airport.”
Initially, he indicated that they will seek to establish a Puebla-Puerto Escondido flight, from Oaxaca to Chiapas and Tulum in Quintana Roo; as well as strengthen routes to Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Houston.
He explained that they have approached Viva Aerobús, Volaris, and Mexicana de Aviación to open new routes; however, the consolidation process is ongoing, but market studies indicate that they are attractive for Puebla residents.
Gabriel Chedraui said that the plans are accompanied by integrating the Puebla terminal into the metropolitan airport network, which is why they are seeking to have more daily operations.
He admitted that the first results of new flights could be seen by 2026, starting with expanding the domestic service. He mentioned that there is ample opportunity to grow the airport during this six-year term.
There is a willingness from federal authorities, primarily from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (Sedena), which holds the Puebla airport concession, which it received from the ASA (National Air Transport Association).
Source: eleconomista
