Spain built a huge $1.1 billion airport but it was never used and reportedly sold for the price of a Rolex
- This private Spanish airport cost $1.1 billion to build
- But the project was doomed and it closed up just three years later
- Following bankruptcy it went up for sale, where it sold for a fraction of its value
Published on Mar 11, 2025 at 7:33 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Mar 11, 2025 at 3:41 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A huge private international airport costing $1.1 billion opened up outside of Madrid, Spain, but it closed for good just three years later, selling for a fraction of what it cost to build.
When it opened up in 2009, Ciudad Real International Airport was Spain’s first private international airport.
It featured a whopper of a runway that stretched 4,100 meters (13,500ft) long and 60 meters (200ft) wide – making it one of the largest in Europe.
However, in 2012 its management filed for bankruptcy and sold for around the same price as a Rolex watch – here’s what went wrong at Ciudad Real International Airport.
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Ciudad Real International Airport cost around $1.1 billion to build
There are some unusual airports out there – from this one that’s slap-bang on the edge of a ski slope in the French Alps, to this one that has a road running through it.
And back in 2009, authorities in Spain decided to open the country’s first ever private international airport – but things didn’t quite work out.
Situated south of Ciudad Real in Spain, it cost around $1.1 billion to build and was designed to be able to accept all forms of commercial airliners – even super-sized ones like the Airbus A380.
Its passenger terminal was created with the capacity to process two million passengers a year – with a maximum of up to 10 million passengers if additional modules were included.
And it also had cargo facilities that were designed to handle a maximum of 47,000 tonnes a year.
Sounds great, right?
So, what went wrong?
Once it was opened, it failed to attract the attention of any of the major players.
Only two airlines – Ryanair and Vueling – started up regular routes to Ciudad Real International Airport.
Not only that, but Spain was in the midst of a huge financial crisis, which lasted from 2008 to 2014, meaning folks weren’t traveling to and from the country as often.
With fewer than hoped passengers making use of the facility, bankruptcy loomed and in 2012 – just three years after opening – and with more than €300 million of debt (around USD $325 million) – operations were shut down.
After seven years lying dormant, a Chinese consortium called Tzaneen International won a bankruptcy auction with a bid of just €10,000 – less than the price of a new Rolex Submariner watch.
However, this sale was later rejected by the courts in Spain as the bid failed to hit the receiver’s minimum asking price – by many millions.
A sale for the airport was eventually finalized in 2018, for €56.2 million (around USD $61 million) and the airport reopened again the following year.
Although the airport is back open again, commercial passenger flights are not thought to be coming back to Ciudad Real International Airport any time soon.
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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Claire covers a wide variety of topics, with a special focus on cars, technology, planes, cryptocurrency, and luxury.
