Fraport Greece, a subsidiary of Fraport AG about three years ago, decided to invest a total of 415 million euros in 14 regional airports, 100 million of which relate to the rebuilding of Thessaloniki Airport. Improvements include a second terminal, rebuilding the runway and apron areas, and installing a modern luggage management and control system. According to Executive Committee Chairman Dr. Stefan Schulte, “Thessaloniki is a city with amazing heritage and prospects, so its airport must be similar.” Aimed at improving the overall customer experience, Fraport wants to upgrade its functionality, services, connectivity and infrastructure.
The importance of the airport expansion for Thessaloniki
The importance of this project for Thessaloniki as well as for the rest of Greece is really great. This new Thessaloniki airport marks the beginning of a new era that aims to create a modern hub for the Southeast Balkans. Fraport’s project is expected to be completed in 2021, bringing with it the development not only of the city of Thessaloniki but also of the wider region. At the same time, one of the benefits of this investment for the country is the expansion of the labor sector, as the number of employees increased by 32% to 700 directly employed and 14,000 indirectly related to Fraport’s activities.
Upgrading 14 regional airports
More than 2 years have been completed since the day that Fraport Greece started the management and reconstruction of 14 regional airports. According to the company, the upgrading of Zakynthos, Kavala and Chania airports has been completed, offering better customer service, while also improving their overall travel experience. The completion of operations at the airports of Samos, Mytilene, Rhodes, Kefalonia, Skiathos and Akti is in order. The final goal of Fraport is to have all projects started in April 2017 completed by 2021, including the airports of Kos, Santorini, Mykonos, Corfu and of course Thessaloniki’s “Makedonia”.
New “Makedonia” Airport
The investment of 100 million euros for the expansion of Thessaloniki Airport “Makedonia” is continuing with strong pace. The upgrading plans include the construction of a new 34,000m² terminal and the creation of new access, a new Terminal and upgrading of the existing one, the expansion of the sewage treatment plant or connection to the municipal network, the creation of a new Fire Station, refurbishment of aircraft landing-take-off lanes, reorganization of aircraft parking and installation of ‘HBS inline screening’ for luggage control. In addition, there will be a 47% increase in Check-in stations, a 75% luggage reception area, a doubling of airport security and checkpoints and a 50% increase in the total number of gates.
Fraport Greece marks the start of a new era for Thessaloniki and the rest of Greece, as modernizing the 14 airports by upgrading both their exterior and interior image, giving to the Greek tourism a fresh impetus while offering a pleasant travel experience to thousands of passengers each year.
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