|
The birds taught to us to arrive by the air and the Wright brothers turned that human dream to fly into fact. Since then with the technological development, aviation has become a means of simple, desirable and fast transport covering the world, and has turned the airports into our international doors, therefore they speak of us, a greater reason that they are a luxury.
Costa Rica counts on two international airports. The main one is the International Airport of Juan Santamaría, near the capital, San Jose. The second is the Daniel Oduber International Airport of Liberia, in the province of Guanacaste (tourist zone). Those programs that are carried out in the coast of the North Pacific can use the International Airport of Liberia. This recently refurbished airport renewed receives international airlines, charter flights, and private flights.
Juan Santamaría airport is administered at the present time by Alterra Partners, the State maintains the title for the Airport and delegates in the private sector the investments and administration of the terminal, and shares the income. The government maintains direct control of: Customs, Migration, Public Security, supplying fuel, air traffic control and air navigation, duty free stores of the IMAS and the manipulation of load through third. Alterra Costa Rica handles the operations at the terminal: passengers, aerial field, handling of luggage, parking, coordination and commercial handling of incline, operations, coordination and loading of cargo. By the capacity of the terminals, the dimension of the planes, the runway, and the number of flights, the Juan Santamaría and Liberia enjoy the international category 4E, and by the capacity of rescue and fire extinguishing the Juan Santamaría is category 9.
The airport accepts 18 international commercial passenger airlines (American and European), private flights, a quantity of charter flights, internal flights for national airlines, and national and international cargo carriers. The effort of last the five years developing and infrastructure has managed to turn Juan Santamaría into an airport of world-wide class, with catering services, stores, diplomatic amenities, banking services, newspapers, magazines, client services, tour guides and directions, restrooms, disabled access, the Red Cross, international security, car rentals, etc. In sequence of priorities the service grows through passengers, airlines, State and concessions. The airport receives and dispatches 2.000.000 tourists per year. Awarded in its category as the third best airport world-wide and second best airport of the Américas based on the annual report of surveys of passengers by the International Air Transportation Association (IATA).
We also count on two international airports for private flights and some commercial ones, these are: the Tobías Bolaños airport in Pavas, San Jose, and the Airport of Limón, next to the Caribbean Sea, in the province of Limón, both with Migration and Customs services. There is multitude of airports for local air service throughout the country. The services of airports in Costa Rica, by their location, allow to accede with all comfort to any place in the national territory. |
