IATA bats for new international airport in Mexico

April 10, 2018: The International Air Transport Association
(IATA) has pledged its strong support to construct a new international airport in
the Mexico City that was launched in 2014, to replace Benito Juárez
International Airport.

“The current airport is bursting at the seams. It serves 47
million passengers, which is almost 50 percent higher than its design capacity
of 32 million. A new airport is vital to enable Mexico City to benefit from its
ideal geographic position, which links North America and Latin America,” said Peter
Cerda, regional vice president for the Americas, IATA.

The aviation industry enormously contributes to the economy
of Mexico. It supports one million jobs, and contributes 2.9 percent to its GDP,
which includes economic contributions from foreign tourists. But due to lack of
infrastructure, the region has failed to capture a larger share of benefits from
the aviation connectivity, regionally and globally, according to a new study
conducted by IATA.

The study shows that for a country of its size, Mexico has
been underperforming in terms of its integration with the global air transport
network. It means that aviation is not fully delivering the benefits that it
could reap with sufficient infrastructure. In this regard, Mexico trails
countries with much smaller homegrown markets, such as Panama, the Dominican
Republic, Colombia, Peru and Chile.

The IATA study also identifies the cost of missed
opportunities incase infrastructure development does not keep pace with the demand
for aviation connectivity. If the new airport is not built, it could mean 20
million fewer passengers per year by 2035. It can translate into a loss of $20
billion to the GDP, and can tail off 200,000 jobs in Mexico by 2035.

“With its enormous local population, strong attractions for
business and tourism, and geographic advantages, Mexico City has the ability to
play a much bigger role on global stage. But for that to happen, the aviation
infrastructure needs to be adequate and affordable, which is why it’s absolutely
vital that the new Mexico City Airport is built as planned,” said Cerda.