Mérida, Yucatán — From January to June of this year, 150,000 extra passengers arrived by air.
That’s a 15 percent increase over the same period in 2016, said the general manager of the Mérida international airport.
On average, 166,000 people arrive each month, or about 5,500 people every 24 hours.
This year is expected to close with more than 2 million people arriving in the city by air, which would set a record.
For national travelers, this is the middle of the July-August summer high season. The airport manager estimates 180,000 arrivals each month, or a 12 percent increase over last year.
Expanding the airport
A master plan to keep up with the Manuel Crescencio Rejón Airport’s growth is due in 14 months, and an expansion is expected in 2019, said administrator Óscar Carrillo Maldonado and the regional ASUR director, Héctor Navarrete Muñoz.
Airports in Mexico undergo a master plan every five years to establish infrastructure needs.
Carrillo Maldonado predicts a “strong and more robust” remodeling of the terminal.
Navarrete Muñoz stressed that for now, the facilities are “sufficient” for the number of passengers and flights.
“There are a lot of people coming, but we have enough space, runways, platforms, taxiways. But we must always be alert; we want to grow and be able to give greater service and connectivity,” he said.
The airport was remodeled last year, when the international arrivals space was expanded by more than 100 percent. A vastly more welcoming immigration, baggage claim and customs area was completed based on earlier assessments.
