The last Liberec council will discuss the sale of the airport

Liberec - The city council in Liberec will discuss the sale of the Liberec airport at its last meeting before the municipal elections. Only one bidder, former co-owner of the company Integra, Petr Turek, showed interest in the seventy-hectare site during the public tender. He offered the city approximately 105 million crowns for the land. The plan is not favored by the Liberec region or some coalition ČSSD representatives, and the opposition is also against it. However, the city has budgeted for the income from the sale of the airport.
    This is not the first time the sale of the site has been discussed; the city does not want to invest in its development. Mayor Jiří Kittner (ODS) believes that Liberec does not need an international airport due to its location - it is close to Prague and Dresden, and companies mostly use regular air lines.
    The airport began operations in April 1934. It lost its international status a few years ago when the Aeroklub ČR requested the Czech Civil Aviation Authority to suspend it. International operations were only resumed two years ago. Now the airport operates as international but non-public, meaning that an incoming flight from abroad must announce itself 24 hours in advance.
    Due to noise and the lack of lighting, planes can only land in Liberec during the day. Additionally, the site does not have a fixed runway, so only small airplanes up to 5.7 tons for 12 to 14 passengers can land there. Building a fixed runway is estimated to cost between 200 to 300 million crowns. However, the city does not have the funds for such an investment.