The transport of goods was, until now, the great pending subject of the Castellón airport. But the intention of Aerocas and its new CEO, Blanca MarÃn, is that the freight transport becomes one of the three pillars of the airport after having developed the tourist side, with tourist routes to various countries encouraged by the Generalitat Valenciana itself that are now suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the industrial side, with the scrapping, maintenance and parking of aircraft .
A bet that is even more important after learning that the online commerce giant Amazon plans to establish a large logistics center in the town of Onda, very few kilometers from Castellón airport and that, therefore, the shipping multinational could take advantage of the aeronautical infrastructure to transport its products.
Amazon plans to build the most important logistics plant that the e-commerce giant implements in the Community. It will be added to the other three with similar characteristics that already host Madrid, Barcelona and Seville. For the e-commerce giant, having an airport nearby is another possibility when it comes to speeding up shipments. Amazon even has its own planes to carry out the transport of goods.
But Aerocas’s idea of betting on merchandise was hatched before to know Amazon’s intentions to implant a plant in the province. In fact, the public company that manages Castellón airport has held various meetings to address the foray into logistics. Among some encounters related to the transport of goods, those recently maintained with the Valencian Business Confederation (CEV) and the Castellón Port Authority.
In both cases, the assessment has been positive and even The possibility of establishing synergies has been agreed with PortCastelló with the aim of promoting the advancement of the logistics sector and the economic growth of the territory. MarÃn stressed during said meeting that the port’s experience and collaboration  «can be very useful to the airport» when guiding the development of the Complementary Activities Zone (ZAC), where an economic pole linked to logistics is projected and to the aeronautical industry.
For his part, the president of CEV Castellón, Sebastián Pla, agreed on the need to join public and private efforts to revitalize the economy of the Community and ensure smart, sustainable and inclusive economic growth.  «The creation of a business logistics pole it seems to us a strategic decision, which It will allow us to make the most of Castellón airport.Pla said.
Aerocas has not confirmed whether it has held any meeting with Amazon to discuss possible collaborations, although, obviously, it recognizes that its implementation can boost the transport of goods.
Only one flight of merchandise due to Covid-19
The only experience of the airport with the transport of merchandise was forged last spring due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was the arrival of the past May 5, a medical transport plane loaded with 200,000 masks for the autonomous government and 370,000 masks for 131 municipalities of the province of Castellón, in an operation coordinated by the Provincial Council.
It was a flight from Belarus that had previously left China. Specifically, it was an Ilyushin II-76TD aircraft from the Ruby Star Airline specialized in freight transport.
However, the airport has a hangar for handling merchandise that is currently being used in part by the E-Cube firm, which specializes in the dismantling of aircraft. The transport of goods had not been a priority at the Aerocas air base until now, although it did arouse interest among the firms that, in their day, opted to manage the air base. This was not the case of SNC Lavalin, the successful bidder of the management, which never opted for this business route.
Yes, this business aspect included one of the three firms that opted in 2014 to manage the air base. In addition to SNC Lavalin, which eventually left the airport after becoming Edeis, they opted for a firm known as Gesnaer and another company formed by entrepreneurs from the Valencian Community.It was the latter that bet on merchandise as a way of business that, now, more than six years later, it seems that it may have a place at the airport.
The airline Five Airways also offered its services as a freight transport company, which came to have Castellón airport as the base of its Yak-42, a passenger plane that remained parked for months and finally abandoned the Castellón facility.
THE ACTIVITY OF THE AIR BASE
Regular flights. It was the first route that was launched and now, with the pandemic, they have been suspended.
Dismantling. Aircraft disassembly was the second way that the Castellón air base explored.
Pilot schools. Two academies give practical classes with light aircraft.
Parking. The Covid-19 caused the airport to bet on the parking of aircraft before the stoppage of the sector. Currently there are about 40 aircraft parked.
Maintenance. It is one of the most recent routes that will allow aircraft maintenance in Castellón.
LogÃstica. It is the last leg left to test at the airport. Now, with Amazon, it is gaining momentum.
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