Tocumen Airport Announces Improvements, Aims for 23 Million Passengers This Year

The airport manager also reported on the improvements being made to the two terminals. The airport is expected to handle 23 million passengers this year. This was announced by José Ruiz Blanco, manager of Tocumen International Airport, who highlighted that they are determining the best route. Ruiz stated that the purpose is to bring Terminal 1 up to the same standard as Terminal 2, which will be done gradually. Depending on the decision of the head of state, the actions regarding these air terminals will be executed. The airport with the least activity is the one in Colón. The David airport maintains daily activity with three airlines that have flights to the capital. Regarding Terminal 1, the bathrooms have already been repaired, and little by little, carpets and ceilings will be replaced. As for Terminal 2, around 10 additional gates will be enabled to respond to the increasing demand that is registered every year. The concession of regional airports is a topic that could begin to be defined in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, the Coclé airport receives charter flights for tourists visiting the Pacific Riviera of Panama. 'By mid-December, we must have some response to present to the president and make the corresponding decisions,' he stated. Ruiz pointed out that there are several interested companies and the proposals were delivered to the advisors for them to analyze and then present to President José Raúl Mulino. Currently, Tocumen airport is in charge of Enrique Malek (David), Enrique A. Jiménez (Colón), and Scarlett Martínez (Coclé) airports. This government reversed the concession of this air terminal that had been approved by the previous administration, upon detecting irregularities.