The Juan Santamaria Airport inaugurated this Friday the area known as Block Victor (Block V) which includes four new boarding rooms, contact bridges, basement to handle luggage, VIP room and pet area, among others.

The block includes 6000 square meters ( 64,583.5 square ft.) in four levels and its another of the parts of the expansion plan of Aeris Holding Costa Rica, which has been executed by stages in the last years and that must be completed by 2020 with a total investment of more than $96 million. Cost of block V reached $23.5 million.

With this new section the airport now has 20 boarding rooms and 13 contact bridges.

Guillermo Hoppe, Director of Civil Aviation, commented on the importance of staying up to date with international standards when it comes to aviation matters considering that this is one of the areas that generates more income for the country. It is estimated that 6 out of each 10 tourists enter the country through the Juan Santamaria Airport, and according to the Minister of Tourism, Maria Amalia Revelo, between 2017 and 2018 the arrivals through this airport grew by 5.9%.

Even though the government had announced years back the construction of a new airport in Orotina, this plan has not even started, the initial goal was to have the first stage ready by 2027.