With an investment of more than 3 billion pesos (US 172,426,500), Tulum’s airport, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, is ready to receive its first passengers since Friday, December 1.
24 Horas Quintana Roo was given a guided tour of the airport’s facilities, runways, and hangar, confirming that nearly everything is prepared ahead of the inauguration.
Captain Luis Fernando Hernández, member of the Felipe Ángeles engineers group responsible for the construction of the airport, said:
“For this work, 1,500 hectares have been acquired in the municipality of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, of which 1,200 were occupied for the existing infrastructure and 300 more for an interconnection of 12.5 kilometers, from federal highway 307 to the first access road to the airport,” he said.
He explained that this site has two access points. The first features a Maya house, while the second showcases a welcome sign positioned right at the main entrance of the airport. At the rear of the site is the passenger terminal, the largest building within this structure.
“The airport has an area of more than 70,000 square meters of construction and more than 1,400 meters of commercial premises. This terminal will be able to handle 5.5 million passengers per year in the first construction phase. After that, its capacity will be increased,” he added.
He also highlighted that at the main entrance there is a sculpture of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, a historical figure in southeastern Mexico who fought for the rights of the Mayan people. He pointed out that the construction required a master plan prepared by the Army Corps of Engineers and approved by the Federal Civil Aviation Agency.
In addition to this major work, there is the construction of the Mayan Train, so that this airport complex connects with the Tulum Airport Mayan Train Station through the existing roads for 7.5 kilometers.
He recalled that the construction of this airport began on June 13, 2023, creating more than 17 thousand jobs.
He stressed that since last week until today, there have been various test flights by different airlines.
“There have been various test flights. It is important to mention that before an airport becomes operational, various operational tests are carried out; this airport was no exception,” he added.