With works “day and night” and despite doubts, Santa Lucía prepares its takeoff

The tables are also already set in front of the commercial premises. Each one, still with the curtains down, has signs that inform about what will be sold there: “cakes”, “sweets”, “bookstore”.

Upstairs, the polished floors and ready-to-use playground equipment contrast with the dozens of workers who climb up and down scaffolding in a task against the clock to fine-tune the last details.

Each of these actions reflects a clear objective: to finish in time for the government to inaugurate the Santa Lucía airport on March 21.

President López Obrador set that date to coincide with the birth of Benito Juárez —a historical figure whom he frequently says he admires— and since the beginning of his administration in 2018 he has defended the project against questions and criticism. For example, the doubts about whether or not it will be enough to satisfy the demand for air mobility in the Valley of Mexico or the indications that the canceled New Mexico International Airport (NAIM) represented a better option.

Now, the commitment to have everything ready on March 21 is so firm that tickets for flights scheduled for that same day are already sold out. Viva Aerobus and Volaris will take off from the AIFA runways with four departures to Tijuana, Cancun, Monterrey and Guadalajara.

“As requested by the high command (President López Obrador), all the work and efforts will have to be done so that this is done and that on March 21 this airport is inaugurated in a timely manner,” he tells Grupo Expansión the construction engineer captain Jorge Adán Díaz Baltasar.

Mexican culture, from the entrance to the boarding

The AIFA not only seeks to be a point of arrival and departure for commercial aircraft, but also a place where users have a different cultural and tourist experience, without neglecting modernity and design.

To do this, every corner is exploited on the premises. From the parking lots to the last waiting rooms, the spaces are decorated with themes alluding to the history of Mexico, the magical towns or the popular culture of the country.