New Larnaca airport opens

THE NEW €656.3 million Larnaca International Airport is open for business after being inaugurated by President Demetris Christofias yesterday. Operations will officially begin on Tuesday.
Christofias was joined by his wife Elsi and Hermes Airport Ltd’s founder and Chairman Nicolas Shacolas, as well as a number of officials, including French Minister of State for European Affairs Pierre Lellouche, Communications Minister Nicos Nicolaides and EU Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou.
A musical performance by the Police Philharmonic Band was followed by a blessing from Archbishop Chrysostomos II and more musical events, before the speeches.
The invitation-only event wrapped up with a dance theatre performance, followed by a cocktail reception courtesy of Cyprus Airways.
Arriving at the airport, both the President and Elsi expressed their “pride” over the new building. Asked whether he would be entering with his right foot, left-wing Christofias joked, “I’ll be entering with my left foot, which is luckier”.
As of Tuesday only flights by Cyprus Airways and easyJet will go in and out of the new airport. All other airlines will transfer their arrivals and departures to the upgraded building by November 17.
“Today is a landmark, not just in the history of Cypriot tourism, but also our country’s developmental substructure in its entirety,” said Christofias, adding that Cypriots should be feeling especially proud of their new airport.
The new airport, said the President, would play a significant role in establishing Cyprus as a key transit point for decades to come.
Christofias added, “Many of us remember the era when Larnaca International Airport first operated. Just six months after the Turkish invasion – in February 1975 – the construction and operation of Larnaca Airport was of immediate and vital importance for our then secluded island. A rushed passengers’ building was set up, a wooden control tower and the new airport started operating; even with restricted capabilities to start off with”.
In the difficult years following the invasion, the tourist industry became one of the biggest crutches for Cyprus’ economy, making an operational airport a must.
The need to upgrade the island’s tourist product, said Christofias, led to the decision to upgrade Cyprus’ two airports, in Paphos and Larnaca.
“Today, 35 years after the Turkish invasion, the operation of the new International Larnaca Airport is entering a new phase, making today a historic day,” he commented. “The passengers’ area we are inaugurating today is of the highest quality, with modern designs and the latest technological equipment.”
The President referred to the significant role the new building will play when Cyprus takes over EU presidency in 2012, by offering the highest level of service.
“With its operation, we feel the new Larnaca Airport guarantees Cyprus plays a significant role in the broader Eastern Mediterranean area,” he added.
The airport, said Christofias, will help Cyprus emerge from the grip of the financial crisis, while the government ensures the necessary measures are taken to ease the consequences.
Some of these measures include the state’s decision to reduce landing duties by a quarter, as well as offering airline companies €4 for every passenger they transport, which totals to €16 million.
The airport, with a capacity of seven and a half million, aims to become a hub in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region, said Communications Minister Nicos Nicolaides.
The new airport, he added, is expected to help revive and further boost tourism, increase transit trade and attract new investments.
The new premises, which took just over three years to complete, were built by the French firm Bouyges and is the largest infrastructure project with French involvement to date in Cyprus. Pierre Lellouche, President Sarkozy’s representative at last night’s opening, said “It is greatly appreciated by my government that a French operator has been selected for such an endeavor, which is also the largest ever French direct investment in Cyprus.”
Politically, the new airport is an indication of strengthening relations between France and Cyprus. “I also think this event bears a particular political meaning. It is a very good demonstration of the wide-range of the bilateral relationship between France and Cyprus, a relationship that is built on shared values and has deepened over the last ten years,” commented Lellouche.
Meanwhile, Shacolas yesterday announced that at least five new airlines would be using Larnaca Airport in coming weeks.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.