The major new £422million airport set to transform European island with 18million passengers a year
GREECE'S biggest island is getting a huge new £422million airport.
4
Greece's biggest island is getting a huge new airport
Credit: Heraklion Airport
4
The new Heraklion International Airport will replace the current airport on Crete
Credit: Hill International
4
It will start replacing the current airport next year with a full opening in 2027
Credit: Hill International
According to the New Heraklion International Airport, the new airport will serve 10million passengers each year, after opening.
This number will then rise to 18million after some time.
There will be 19 boarding gates, eight of which will be of combined use for Schengen and
There will be space for 27 aircraft and also a terminal building with five levels of
retail
space and permanent exhibition areas.
Read more on airports
A masterplan map also shows an area shaded in purple that suggest
future
retail
space.
In addition, the airport is due to be one of the biggest in the country and when it opens it will replace the existing Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport in Heraklion.
Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport opened back in 1937, however, it can only accommodate eight million passengers a year.
Kastelli International Airport is being built to handle the growing number of tourists heading to Greece each year.
Most read in News Travel
The airport will be located a 25-minute drive away from Heraklion, which is the largest city on the island.
In total, the airport is expected to cost €500million (£422million) to build and generate a total of 7,500
jobs
in the area as well as a further 37,000 indirect
jobs
.
The new £7billion mega terminal opening at Changi Airport
In addition, the new airport is expected to give new life to Crete's tourism.
According to
A trial launch of of the airport will take place next summer, before a full opening in 2027.
Currently, airlines including easyJet, Jet2 and British Airways fly to Crete.
These are likely to move to the new airport when it opens.
And there are a number of other new exciting airports opening around the world.
A new
Plus,
4
There will be 19 boarding gates, eight of which will be of combined use for Schengen and Non-Schengen flights
Credit: Heraklion Airport
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The Irish Sun
21 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
The major new £422million airport set to transform European island with 18million passengers a year
GREECE'S biggest island is getting a huge new £422million airport. 4 Greece's biggest island is getting a huge new airport Credit: Heraklion Airport 4 The new Heraklion International Airport will replace the current airport on Crete Credit: Hill International 4 It will start replacing the current airport next year with a full opening in 2027 Credit: Hill International According to the New Heraklion International Airport, the new airport will serve 10million passengers each year, after opening. This number will then rise to 18million after some time. There will be 19 boarding gates, eight of which will be of combined use for Schengen and There will be space for 27 aircraft and also a terminal building with five levels of retail space and permanent exhibition areas. Read more on airports A masterplan map also shows an area shaded in purple that suggest future retail space. In addition, the airport is due to be one of the biggest in the country and when it opens it will replace the existing Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport in Heraklion. Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport opened back in 1937, however, it can only accommodate eight million passengers a year. Kastelli International Airport is being built to handle the growing number of tourists heading to Greece each year. Most read in News Travel The airport will be located a 25-minute drive away from Heraklion, which is the largest city on the island. In total, the airport is expected to cost €500million (£422million) to build and generate a total of 7,500 jobs in the area as well as a further 37,000 indirect jobs . The new £7billion mega terminal opening at Changi Airport In addition, the new airport is expected to give new life to Crete's tourism. According to A trial launch of of the airport will take place next summer, before a full opening in 2027. Currently, airlines including easyJet, Jet2 and British Airways fly to Crete. These are likely to move to the new airport when it opens. And there are a number of other new exciting airports opening around the world. A new Plus, 4 There will be 19 boarding gates, eight of which will be of combined use for Schengen and Non-Schengen flights Credit: Heraklion Airport
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Irish citizens travelling to Georgia to obtain a fast-track driving licence in loophole
Tonight Prime Time on RTÉ will explore how Irish citizens were travelling, in an agreement the that is no longer in operation. Last week, Prime Time travelled to a driving school in Rustavi, a city near the Georgian capital Tbilisi, to look into the trend. Many Irish people travelled there after contacting Mika Vincheuski, a Belarusian living in Georgia who facilitates driving lessons and arranges test dates for non-Georgians who want to get their licence quickly. 'It's a fully legal process,' said Ms Vincheuski. 'People arrive in Georgia, take lessons, pass the tests, and get their licence. We just help them navigate the system.' Georgia's fast and efficient process for driving tests has brought people to the country from all over the world, including some from Ireland. Some companies offered licenses to Irish people in approximately 14 days, with applicants completing a theory test, parking exam and city driving exam for approximately €800. Currently, the average waiting list in Ireland to get a driving test appointment is over 20 weeks. This is after you have completed a theory test, applied for a learner's permit and completed 12 lessons over the course of several months. Ireland is also experiencing a large backlog of driving test applications with more than 83,000 applicants waiting for a driving test in April. Prime Time met a number of Irish people who were in Georgia, who explained why they chose to make the journey. Among those who travelled to the country was Laura, who had passed her motorcycle test and received her licence. She plans to exchange it for the Irish equivalent within weeks of returning home. "I did the motorcycle one, so it's been a success three days in: theory on the first day, on the third day then I did my test - passed, licence in hand," she said. Prime Time has since learned that this process has been officially closed. The Georgian Ministry for Internal Affairs has confirmed to Prime Time that new legislation was enacted last week, requiring applicants for Georgian driving licences to have resided in the country for a minimum of 180 days. This move effectively halts a workaround increasingly used by Irish people facing long delays in the Irish driving test system. The programme will also feature a follow-up to RTÉ Investigates: Inside Ireland's Nursing Homes.
RTÉ News
2 days ago
- RTÉ News
Red light: Georgia blocks licence path for Irish learner drivers
A process allowing Irish residents to fast-track obtaining Irish driving licences by travelling to Georgia has been closed. Georgian officials at the Ministry for Internal Affairs told Prime Time that new legislation has come into effect in the last week, requiring any new applicants for a Georgian driving licence to have been resident in the country for a minimum of 180 days. A memorandum of understanding signed between Ireland and Georgia last year had meant that a driving licence obtained in Georgia could be exchanged for an Irish licence and vice versa. Competent drivers can pass their tests in Georgia and receive a licence in a week or two. The country's fast and efficient driving test process has drawn applicants from across Ireland and countries in mainland Europe. As of 31 May, the national average waiting time for a driving test in Ireland stands at 20.6 weeks — a slight improvement from the 27-week average recorded at the end of April, according to the Road Safety Authority (RSA). Last week, Prime Time travelled to a driving school in the city of Rustavi, around 30km from Tbilisi, Georgia's capital. The school specialises in preparing foreigners to pass their driving tests. There, Mika Vincheuski, a Belarusian living in Georgia, spoke of how he facilitates driving lessons and arranges test dates for non-Georgians who want to get their licence quickly. He said numerous Irish people had been to through the process with him over the last year, and obtained their Georgian licence for exchange back in Ireland. "We're supporting foreigners in getting a driving licence here. It's a fully legal process where people arrive to Georgia and they go through the examination; they prepare for the exams," he said. "They need to know very well how to drive. But we guide them through the whole process so that they don't have to handle Georgian bureaucracy and figure it out all by themselves," he added. Mika has used social media to promote his business. Prime Time met several Irish people at the driving school on the day of filming attracted by Instagram adverts, each at different stages of obtaining their licences. One Irishwoman, Laura, had already passed her Georgian exam and received her motorcycle licence. Once back in Ireland, she can exchange it for the Irish equivalent in a process that will take just a couple of weeks to complete. "I did the motorcycle one, so it's been a success three days in: theory on the first day, on the third day then I did my test - passed, license in hand," Laura said. Laura and her boyfriend Pav decided to make a holiday from the trip. Both had experienced problems with the long wait times for a test in Ireland. In Laura's case, she said being unable to rent a motorcycle for the day of the exam meant that she had to cancel and reschedule. By the time she got another date, the time limit on her driving lessons had expired, putting her right back to the start of the process. Pav told Prime Time that he had only sat in the driver's seat of a car for the first time two weeks before travelling to Georgia, and hoped to earn both his motorcycle and car licences before returning to Ireland. Working in tech sales, he can work remotely in Georgia while he completes the process. Both noted the difference between the Irish and Georgian systems. "The [Irish] system must be under resourced or inefficient, one of the two," Pav said, "You'd expect that it wouldn't be as smooth or as clean over here, if we're not able to do it. There's something clearly very wrong." While the new changes to Georgian law mean that fresh applicants must now prove residency of at least 180 days, the country's licensing process remains remarkably fast and efficient. There are three elements to the Georgian driving test. As with Ireland, the first stage is a theory test. A practical exam in a controlled environment — known as the platform or autodrome — follows, where applicants must complete six timed manoeuvres. Those who pass then progress to the final stage: the city driving test. All practical exams are taken in official test vehicles, equipped with cameras, sensors, and an automated computerised system that determines pass or fail, with little room for error or discretion. Applicants show up to the test centre, take a ticket and wait to be called. The theory test can be retaken every week, the autodrome every day and the city driving exam can also be re-sat on a weekly basis. The Georgian testing system has been completely overhauled in recent years, part of broader reforms aimed at aligning with European Union standards, following Georgia's designation as an EU candidate country in 2023. Georgian officials told Prime Time that many parts of the Irish and UK driving test have been transposed into what is now a very modern and efficient new system. The formats of the theory test and city driving test in particular have also been designed to closely mirror the Irish and UK equivalents. The Georgian test system is rigorous. When Prime Time sat the autodrome exam, the first attempt ended in failure despite more than 20 years of driving experience. A second attempt was more successful. During a demonstration of the city driving test in Rustavi, Mika explained that any errors causing an automatic failure will result in the applicant being asked to pull the car over and to surrender control of the vehicle to the accompanying examiner. He said it enables authorities to complete far more tests. Automatic disqualification can happen at any point during the exam, even before the vehicle has left the test centre. Prime Time observed several failed applicants on the roads sitting sheepishly in the back of the testing cars, being driven back to the test centre by their examiner. Mika told Prime Time that he's had hundreds of requests for services from Ireland in recent months. However, the change of Georgian legislation, introduced just last week, has closed off this avenue to a licence to would-be Irish drivers. It has also closed a potential release valve for the increasing pressure on the Irish system.
