Local Politics Threaten to Derail Mexico’s New International Airport
Photo Credit: Mexico City's new international airport could hit a snag because of local politics. Pictured is a rendering of the airport. Foster + Partners
Skift Take
There hasn't been a new major airport built in the United States since 1995. Why? Well, politics can be tricky, as we're seeing in Mexico City. Its new airport is slated to begin accepting flights in 2020. But will it? The answer is probably yes, despite recent rumblings. But who knows.
One expects to encounter gigantic new airports under construction in East Asia, or along the Persian Gulf. In North America, not so much: Denver International Airport, which opened for business in 1995, is the last big-time, all-new airport to have been built on this continent. Lack of available space near big cities, environmental concerns and political obstacles have all stood in the way of building more. This unwillingness or inability to create new “aerotropolises,” as University of North Carolina business school professor John Kasarda has dubbed the economic hubs that grow up around major airports, risks becoming a competitive disadvantage.
But wait! There is a giant new North American airport in the works. It’s probably not where you’d expect, though.
What is currently being called the Nuevo Aeropuerto Internacional de la Ciudad de México (NAICM for short) is taking shape just outside Mexico City. Construction of the runways is about halfway done, the cont
