Split Airport opens new terminal

Split Airport will today open its new passenger terminal after two and a half years of construction. The project, valued at 59.4 million euros, will enable the airport to handle an additional one million passengers per year and ease summer congestion. The terminal will be officially opened at 12.15 CEST by the Croatian Prime Minister, Andrej Plenković, and the Minister for Sea, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković. The airport's General Manager, Lukša Novak, noted, "The terminal will be three times the size. Instead of the current 14.000 square metres it will have 50.000 square metres. This additional space will enable us to handle 2.500 passengers per hour instead of the current 2.000. That totals 40.000 travellers per day".

The multi million euro project stretches over a total area of 80.000 square metres and involved the construction of a car park with the capacity to accommodate 900 vehicles, as well as a bus terminal, that can cater for up to 49 busses. The passenger terminal itself features thirty check-in desks, seven semi-automated security lanes, a panoramic restaurant with views of the tarmac, a new premium lounge and an automated baggage sorting area. “This project has improved the airport’s infrastructure, increased its capacity, boosted the quality of service and enabled it to become Schengen-ready in the future. This capacity, with some minor adjustments, will be sufficient for the next twenty years”, Split Airport said.

Following today’s opening, the old passenger building will be overhauled and the two structures will be combined to form a single functioning unit. Furthermore, Split Airport plans to overhaul its runway, build a parallel taxiway and expand the apron, which should reduce airside congestion. As Croatia’s most profitable, the airport has funded the project partially through a loan from the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development, while 17.1 million euros were invested from its own means. The Croatian government has exempted the airport from paying tax on profit for the duration of the project. The new terminal opens during Split Airport’s busiest month of the year. It is expected to handle over 3.3 million passengers in 2019.

This news item will be updated during the day.