Lisbon, Jan. 16, 2026 (Lusa) - The managing director of easyJet Portugal believes that any increase in flights in Lisbon should be preceded by improvements in operational quality, warning that the infrastructure is among the worst in Europe for delays.
In an interview with Lusa, José Lopes said that Lisbon airport has been operating at full capacity for several years and needs, above all, to become more operationally robust.
"This airport is at its maximum capacity," he said, pointing out that the ongoing works should be used primarily to reduce operational irregularities.
"Lisbon airport is one of the worst in Europe" in terms of delays, he added, arguing that interventions should focus on restoring predictability for passengers.
He was referring to the ongoing expansion works, which include the recent completion of Terminal 2 and a subsequent expansion phase aimed at increasing capacity from the current 38 movements per hour to a maximum of 45 by 2028.
Although he acknowledged that the increase in movements per hour will also increase capacity, the manager argues that this growth should be phased in.
"The improvements that are achieved should be to make the operation more robust (...) and only then, in a second phase, can there be an increase in capacity," he said.
For easyJet Portugal, adding more flights to an already unstable system would only exacerbate the problems passengers are already experiencing.
"When people buy a flight at 8 a.m., it is supposed to leave at 8 a.m., and not, as a rule, be delayed by 10, 15, 20 minutes," he said.
José Lopes recalled that a political decision has already been made to build a new airport, but that, until then, the original airport will have to continue operating with improvements.
"The political decision has already been made (...) a new airport will be built from scratch [at Campo de Tiro de Alcochete], to which the entire operation will be transferred," he said, adding that until that happens, one cannot "wait at an airport with no capacity for growth."
In 2025, easyJet operated 96 routes to and from Portuguese airports and carried more than 10.5 million passengers, with an average occupancy rate of 92%, one of the highest in its network.
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