With the presence of the president of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou, and authorities of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Aeropuertos Uruguay inaugurated the new Rivera International Airport "Presidente General Oscar D. Gestido", after carrying out an ambitious process of conditioning and renovation of infrastructure and services.
The Rivera Airport, declared binational in August, is the second within the National System of International Airports to be modernized by the company. In addition, it is the first airport in Latin America and the second in the world to be declared binational.
The works carried out included the expansion and renovation of the air terminal and the renewal of the aeronautical infrastructure, providing the opportunity to generate greater connectivity. As an example, it was confirmed that the Azul airline will have a direct flight between Rivera and Porto Alegre.
Present at the ceremony were prominent national and departmental authorities of Uruguay, including the Chancellor of the Republic, Omar Paganini; the Minister of National Defense, Javier García, and the Mayor of Rivera, Richard Sander, as well as the CEO of the company, Martín Eurnekian, who accompanied the inaugural ribbon cutting and the unveiling of a commemorative plaque.
For the Brazilian government, Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira attended; the Minister of Ports and Airports, Silvio Costa Filho; the Minister of Social Communication, Paulo Pimenta, and the governor of Río Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite.
The modernization process in Rivera began in March of this year, with the objective of transforming it into an airport that meets the highest operational safety standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization.
The works, which involved an investment of US$ 13 million, destined for the modernization and expansion of the passenger terminal, were carried out by the Gómez Platero architecture studio. Improvements were also carried out in the control tower and the renewal of the aeronautical communications system, which includes an internal fiber optic network. In addition, facilities for the National Air Police were renovated and a new Fire Department was built.
Additionally, an improvement was carried out in the aeronautical infrastructure, which included the resurfacing of the main runway of 1,830 x 45 meters, the installation of LED beacons on the runway and taxiways and LED lighting on the apron, betting on technology and sustainability in the work.
Inside the 820 square meter terminal, all the comforts for passengers were installed, as well as top-level equipment, such as a new luggage scanner, state-of-the-art communication equipment, among other instruments to have an airport modern, safe and sustainable.
“This inauguration represents another step in our goal of developing a solid airport network for Uruguay that strengthens connectivity and is an engine of economic, tourism and logistics development for our country,” said Diego Arrosa, CEO of Corporación América Airports in Uruguay.
“We are very proud of the Aeropuertos Uruguay team and the work done to have today a modern and safe airport with great growth potential,” he added.
In addition to the Rivera Airport, Aeropuertos Uruguay, which is part of the Corporación América Airports group, manages the airports of Carrasco, Punta del Este, Carmelo, Salto, Durazno, Melo and Paysandú.
Within the framework of its commitment to the development of the National System of International Airports, the company inaugurated the new Carmelo International Airport in December 2022, which in its first year of operation obtained record numbers of operations and passengers.
The company announced that the works at the Salto International Airport are close to completion and that in 2024 it plans to begin modernization works at the Melo, Paysandú and Durazno airports.