Last Update: at 16:32

Parking spaces in Spain and France

Teruel and Tarbes are running out of space

Lufthansa has sent its first A380 to Teruel in Spain for storage. Just as at its French sister location in Tarbes, parking space is becoming increasingly scarce there.

Teruel Airport in the eastern part of Spain is currently very busy. During the Corona crisis, airlines are bringing unused aircraft to the parking area. In addition to numerous older models such as the Airbus A340 or Boeing 747, Airbus A380s can now also be spotted in Teruel.

Since last week, Air France has already sent three Airbus A380s to the airport in the Aragon region. On Tuesday and Wednesday (28 and 29 April) Lufthansa brought its first Airbus A380s into Spanish exile with the D-AIMG and D-AIMF. Prior to this, the airline began to relocate its entire A340-600 fleet to Teruel for at least one year. British Airways also parks its superjumbos at the same location. No wonder, then, that space in Teruel is gradually becoming scarce, just like at its sister location in Tarbes in southern France.

Taxiways and other airports for more space
Both airports are operated by Tarmac Aerosave – a joint venture of Airbus, Safran and Suez. As a result of the worldwide groundings in the wake of the corona crisis, the company is experiencing higher demand than ever before. The company can accommodate around 230 aircraft at both locations. «At the beginning of March we were about 70 percent full,» Tarmac Aerosave sales director Alain Leboucher told the newspaper La Dépêche du Midi.

As the crisis worsened in the following days, the company received enquiries from over 60 aircraft operators. In the first half of April, the airports took in 15 aircraft a week, and between 30 and 40 aircraft were announced for the second half.

Negotiations on further parking areas
According to Leboucher, the occupancy rate in Teruel and Tarbes was already 97 percent in April. The use of unused taxiways had previously increased capacity by a tenth. Tarmac is currently negotiating with other airports in Spain and France on the use of additional parking areas.

In the picture gallery above you can see pictures of the decommissioned Airbus A380 and A340 in Teruel.

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