Barcelona Airport manages to maintain nine out of ten private jet flights

When taking a plane in Barcelona, the usual is to go to the T2 buildings, the oldest terminal of El Prat Airport, or to check in and board through T1, a building that opened with a first flight of the defunct Spanair on June 17, 2009. Departing or arriving through one or the other obviously depends on the airline chosen for travel: if it's Iberia, Vueling, Emirates, or American Airlines, it's T1, while if Easyjet, Ryanair, or Wizzair is chosen, everything goes through T2.

And while it is true that the bulk of air travelers landing or taking off in Barcelona pass through these two buildings, there is a third terminal, smaller, more discreet, and secluded, through which one can also fly: the corporate terminal, which has performed better in these turbulent times for the economy in general and for the aeronautical sector in particular, as it barely lost 13% in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the same period in 2019, in which private operations to other destinations within Spain have risen by 4.32%.

A building by Artigues and Sanabria

In December 2008, half a year before the T1 came into service and very discreetly, Aena inaugurated another passenger terminal to which it did not assign a number, but rather christened it with a name: corporate, to dedicate it exclusively to business, private, and VIP flights, though not official and state flights, as these have their respective spaces in T1 and T2, managed by the Government Delegation in Catalonia.

The new building responded at the time to a clear need: until mid-2008, users of private flights only had a few square meters left over on what was the ground floor of the old terminal dedicated to the air shuttle. The growth of this type of aviation and the profile of its users made it necessary for the airport manager to make a move in this regard and commissioned Aertec engineering and architects Artigues & Sanabria a sober building set apart from the existing terminals. In front of it is the platform where executive jets such as the Cessna Citation, Dassault Falcon or Bombardier park, planes that, in some cases, like the Global Express can fly from Barcelona to anywhere on the planet with a single intermediate stop.

Initially, the terminal, of 2,100 square meters, very bright and divided into two floors, was going to be complemented by a hangar for this sector, although this option was eventually discarded. For almost a decade now, users of this type of aviation have been using this quiet and privileged terminal located between the old control tower and the enormous Iberia Mantenimiento hangar, also known as the Caprice des Dieux, since its design coincides with that of the box of that soft French cheese. Inside, offices of specialized operators, rest rooms for crews and several VIP rooms prepared to serve passengers who barely use them, since generally the plane is already prepared as soon as they arrive at the airport.

The analysis of a business school

According to the TBS business school in Barcelona, one of the parameters to take into account in the recovery of the luxury and high-end sector is that of the take-off and landing operations of private or corporate jets, a segment of aviation that has strongly recovered after the generalized halt of the entire aeronautical sector between March and June of last year.

TBS has collected and analyzed the official data from Aena regarding operations carried out during the second quarter of 2019 and 2021 at the Josep Tarradellas Airport corporate terminal, and the numbers indicate a significant return for the private aviation sector.

Thus, while in the months of April, May and June 2019, the corporate terminal of El Prat Airport hosted a total of 2,720 operations, this last quarter a total of 2,367 operations were carried out, which represents a negative difference of 12.98% of total operations, comparing the second quarter of 2019 and that of 2021. In other words: out of every ten private jet flights operated at Barcelona airport, nine have been maintained.

Regarding the breakdown of the months, in April 2019 there were 646 operations, while in 2021 there were 560, 13.31% less. May 2019 had 972, while this year 855 operations were carried out, that is, a decrease of 12.04%. The month of June is when the airport receives the most air traffic, since in 2019 there were 1,102 operations, while in June of this year 13.61% less were carried out, that is, a total of 952 operations.

Fewer international flights, more domestic flights

It should be noted that even with the general decrease in private flights, there has been an increase of 4.32% in domestic operations, since while in the second quarter of 2019 a total of 797 operations were carried out at El Prat's corporate terminal, in the same months of 2021 the terminal carried out 832 operations.

Even so, the Barcelona airport has seen operations to or from European countries suffer a decrease of 16.87% between the two periods: from 1,701 operations in the second quarter of 2019 as opposed to the 1,414 operations carried out in 2021.

The sharpest drop, of 45%, has been in the number of intercontinental flight operations, since between April and June 2019 the corporate terminal recorded up to 222 operations, compared to 121 in the same period this year.

The luxury industry awaits the return of the premium client

Valerie Lamy, program manager of the MSc Fashion & Luxury Marketing at TBS, tells The New Barcelona Post that just a year ago the luxury industry was very disheartened, with losses of up to 40% of turnover for some brands. "These numbers related to personal and corporate jets are very encouraging," she indicates. "The fact that Barcelona Airport has already recovered nine out of ten private flights also means that there is a demanding user willing to pay a price for quality and well-being in this city and its surroundings, especially after a time when we have been deprived of freedom of movement," Lamy concludes.

The airport is taking off strongly again, and curiously, it's doing so through its most discreet terminal.