Costa Rica’s New Airport to be Built in Palmar Sur – Budget for technical study only confirmed.

The airport in Palmar Sur has been talked about for years and the basic idea is a good one: To open up the southern zone to direct tourism with a local airport, but the new ‘international‘ airport that many real estate sales people in Costa Rica have been using to help close their sales is not going to happen for quite some time as we first suspected back in April 2006.

The budget has been confirmed for the technical study only for a local airport yes but not an international airport.

For the first stage, the new runway will be 1,800 meters long and at that size, big enough for small aircraft with 48-50 passengers. On the 14th July 2007 the Consejo Técnico de Aviación Civil and the Junta de Desarrollo Regional de la Zona Sur signed an agreement to begin the technical studies for this new airport.

To help with the confusion, on the 27th March 2007, the government announced that they had chosen the area for the “international airport” and Viviana Martín, President of the Consejo Técnico de Aviación Civil (CTAC) said that: “Our objective is that the new airport is functioning before 2010.”

On the 15th July 2007 in an article entitled ‘The South To Have A New Airport In 2010‘ the government promised to have the first stage of the airport – a 500M2 terminal (5,350 square feet) with airline counters, toilets and a food area and a runaway for planes that carry 50 passengers – functioning by 2010 which some experts describe as ambitious.

The budget approved of c600,000,000 (US$1.15 million) is for the technical study only associated with the new airport, to perform geological, archaeological and hydrological studies as well as the master plan for the airport. This will determine the number of boarding gates, the final length and width of the runaway and, the final size of the terminal.

Costa Rica’s New Airport at Palmar Sur:

According to the 15th April 2006 edition of La Nacion, “The single runway in the Sierpe Valley is planned to be 3.5 kilometers long (1 meter = 3.28 feet so 3,500 x 3.28 = 11,480 feet) and 60 meters wide 196.8 feet.” Which would be the kind of size required for ‘international’ jets.

However the more recent 15th July announcement stated that “In 2010, the runaway is planned to be only 1,800 meters long (5,904 feet) and 30 meters (98.4 feet) wide.”

Finding real definite costs associated with the construction of a new airport is not easy, but whatever estimates you look at, the difference in cost between building a local airport in Palmar Sur and an ‘international’ airport are enormous and Costa Rica hasn’t finished renovating the country’s main airport yet!

The best data we could track down was from a 2002 study carried out by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. Their spreadsheet shows that to construct a new 75 feet wide runway would cost $150,000 – $450,000 per 1,000 feet and yes labor is cheaper here however, prices have increased dramatically in the last five years and the overall raw materials costs for this type of construction may indeed be higher.

Plus the costs of building a 5,350 square foot terminal, car parks, entrance roads, drainage systems, grooving the runway, establishing turf, hangar construction, lighted windsock, taxiway reflectors, navigational aids with beacons, reflectors, runway lighting systems, airport rescue and fire trucks, jet fuel facility, underground storage tanks, employees and facilities for employees, utility trucks and very significant computer and communication systems which all add up to many millions of dollars more.

The second stage of this new airport is supposedly when they would extend the runway to 2,900 meters (9,512 feet) which is the sort of runway length required by Boeing 737 type planes capable of carrying 110 – 215 passengers.

The Costa Rican aviation authorities don’t seem to be ashamed to admit that they have no idea of the costs associated with building the first stage, with the smaller runway and terminal, never mind the second stage which would probably cost US$100 million + in trying to build an ‘international’ airport capable of allowing the world’s largest jets to land.

Some might say this is a chronic case of putting the oxcart in front of the horse.

So we would suggest that even though the mosquito infested mangrove swamp-view salesmen out there will continue touting the fact that the value of your land will increase dramatically because of the new ‘international’ airport, hopefully this article and the others you will find here will keep you asking questions.

Written by Scott Oliver, author of How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa and Costa Rica’s Guide To Making Money Offshore.

A Rough Guide To New Airport Construction Costs in 2002 – Taken from the Minnesota Department of Transportation:

Construct entrance road $7,000 to $9,000 per 100 feet
Construct parking lot $20,000 to $60,000 per site

Pave entrance road $1,500 to $2,000 per 100 feet
Pave parking lot $15,000 to $30,000 per site
Groove runway insufficient data
Establish turf $1,500 to $4,000 per acre
Drainage system project dependent

Obstruction removal $1,000 to $4,000 per acre

T-hangar site preparation $5,000 to $20,000 per unit

Airport Navigational Aids:

Low intensity beacon (L801) $4,500 unit cost
High intensity beacon (L802) $13,000 to $35,000 unit cost
Lighted windsock $6,000 unit cost
Taxiway reflectors $700 per 1,000 lineal feet
Temporary Airport Lighting System (TALS) $18,000 unit cost

Medium Intensity Runway Lighting System (MIRLS) $130,000 unit cost

High Intensity Runway Lighting System (HIRLS) $155,000 unit cost

Extension of MIRLS or HIRLS

500 +/- 200 feet $13,000 per end
1,000 +/- 200 feet $26,000 per end
1,500 +/- 200 feet $39,000 per end
Runway End Identifier Lighting System (REILS) $12,000 per end
Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) $23,000 per end
Omni-Directional Approach Lighting System (ODALS) $60,000 unit cost
Medium Approach Lighting System/Runway Alignment
Indicator Lighting System (MALS/RAILS) $160,000 unit cost
Lighted Guidance Signs $100,000 unit cost
3-function radio controller $7,000 unit cost
Radio unicom equipment $1,200 unit cost

Remote Communications Outlet (RCO)
Non-Directional Beacon (NDB) $55,000 unit cost
Very High Frequency Omni-Directional Range (VOR) $50,000 unit cost
Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) $120,000 unit cost
Instrument Landing System (ILS) $600,000 unit cost

Electrical services building $16,000 unit cost

Building Area Development:

Arrival/departure building
landing strip $65,000 to $155,000 unit cost
intermediate $65,000 to $250,000 unit cost
key $475,000 to $925,000 unit cost
Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) building $350,000 to $700,000 unit cost
Maintenance building $100,000 to $275,000 unit cost
Maintenance building addition insufficient data
Install utilities project dependent

Construct spray wash facility insufficient data
Automated weather station $80,000 to $90,000 unit cost
Avgas fuel facility $20,000 to $60,000 unit cost

Jet fuel facility $60,000 to $90,000 unit cost
Underground storage tank upgrade/replacement $17,000 to $35,000 unit cost
Airport signing $1,000 to $5,000 per site

Airport Equipment:

Riding mower/mower and blower attachments $4,000 to $12,000 unit cost
Large mower/tractor/loader $15,000 to $45,000 unit cost
Maintenance utility truck $30,000 to $45,000 unit cost
Fuel truck $10,000 to $90,000 unit cost
Used truck and snowplow $15,000 to $65,000 unit cost
General aviation truck and snowplow $45,000 to $95,000 unit cost

Large truck and snowplow $200,000 to $325,000 unit cost
Large snow blower $375,000 to $465,000 unit cost
ARFF vehicle $400,000 to $500,000 unit cost

New Airport Planning Studies:

Master plan $45,000 to $85,000
Update Airport Layout Plan (ALP) and Exhibit A property map $15,000 to $45,000
Feasibility study/environmental assessment $25,000 to $120,000

New Airport Hangar Construction

T-hangar $20,000 to $30,000 per unit
T-hangar $19 to $22 per sq. foot
Carrousel hangar (4-unit) insufficient data
Fixed-Base Operator (FBO) Hangar $40 to $55 per sq. foot
Average of $125 per sq. foot

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Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.