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The Canary Islands’ biggest fortnightly English newspaper read by thousands of tourists & residents
Edition # 692 / 5th - 18th April 2013 / 1.80€ at Newsagents /
www.islandconnections.eu
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BA snub!
www.newscanarias.net
AENA v Cabildo
T
The new five times a week route has been a priority for Tenerife’s tourism bosses, especially as it included a full Business Class service. All seats on the inaugural flight sold out some time ago, including the business class. Cabildo President Ricardo Melchior and BA top bosses were on the first flight, but the Airport Authority apparently refused permission to hold the usual press conference in Tenerife South to celebrate the BA return.
Credit Wo st 01/Wikipedia
he first arrival of a British Airways flight from London Gatwick, restarting the new service to Tenerife after an absence of five years, was spoiled by an escalating spat between the island’s Cabildo and the Airport Authority.
Nerve endings were already raw after a series of recent problems and the Cabildo’s Carlos Alonso called the lack of a formal welcome for the flight, “the straw that broke the camel’s back, promising, “grave
repercussions” and accused AENA of “putting a spanner in the works when they can”, stating, “Some of AENA’s management people here just don’t have a clue”. Recent critical articles on AENA in the local
Spanish press have included a reminder of the white elephant Terminal 2 at Tenerife South, inaugurated in 2009 at a cost of almost €40 million, which has had only sporadic use and mainly remains empty, the ongoing
debate about the extended hours for the northern airport to improve international and national connections, and the inaugural flight farce. The culmination has been a demand from the Cabildo for the replacement of the current head of the AENA Canarian operations, Mario Otero. AENA for their part claim they don’t know what the fuss is about, that the request for a formal reception on the tarmac of the authorities and BA representatives was denied because it is only allowed for top state protocol visits (although that has been waived in the past) and that BA itself said they didn’t want the free, publicity-producing press conference. The row continues to grumble.
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Tourism Rentals Legal update Page 38
Living & Lifestyle >>
Artists on show Tenerife talent Pages 46 & 47
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