Mexico’s Santa Lucía airport shows little progress

Work on the new Felipe Ángeles international airport (AISL) at Santa Lucía military airbase in Mexico state progressed this year despite having been halted for months by concerned citizens. 

At his morning press conference on Tuesday, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) provided updates on how the construction of AISL is progressing. The president promised to deliver updates on the project every other week.

In the last 67 days, defense ministry Sedena, entrusted with the construction of ASIL, has completed 1.66% of the almost 100bn-peso (US$5.2bn) project with an investment of 233mn pesos. Funds for AISL come from the federal government.

Sedena still has 818 days left to complete 98.34% of the airport, which AMLO promised to deliver by March 2022.

So far, the ministry has estimated the airport’s expansion at 2.2Mm2, of which little more than 1.8Mm2 has been excavated.

One of the two runways that will be added to AISL for commercial use has 1.37% of its works completed; meanwhile, electric works, access roads and the new terminal that will serve the runway are below 2% of conclusion.

Construction for the airport was divided into 20 sections, of which 17 are currently active, El Economista reported.

But Sedena is not building the entire project. Paris Aéroport is developing the airport's master plan and NavBlue is carrying out the airworthiness studies. Also, Sedena announced that the private sector would take part of the final construction stage of the AISL.

The first stage of AISL entails two commercial runways, a terminal building for 20mn passengers and 119,000 flights annually, a control tower, a parking spot and other facilities to store fuel and run sewage. 

AISL is one of the three airports AMLO wants to expand over the next four years to deal with the lack of capacity at the existing Benito Juárez international airport (AICM) serving Mexico City. The third airport to help in the endeavor is the one serving Toluca city (AIT) in Mexico state.

AMLO's three-airport system consists of three stages and the opening of AISL would be the last one. 

Other details:

- AISL will have a maximum lifespan of 50 years.

- It will start with 119,000 flights a year and expand to 750,000.

- Two commercial runways will be added to the existing one. 

- It will have 30 contact positions at first, with 30 more being added later.

- Terminals will have an initial capacity of 20mn passengers, which will grow to 80mn.

- It will feature a parking building for 4,000 vehicles.

Pictured: AISL rendering (Photo credit: Gobierno de México)