Viva Aerobus says it will be the first airline to operate from the brand-new Tulum International Airport.
The government has assured the company that the terminal will be operational by April 2024, according to Juan Carlos Zuazua, the head of Viva Aerobus.
Zuazua said in the announcement that the flight to Tulum will help strengthen its Cancun route, which had five million passengers – or 25% of all Viva Aerobus travelers – in 2022.
With the launch of service to Tulum, the low-cost carrier will be the only Mexican airline serving the four international airports in Quintana Roo: Cancun, Chetumal, Cozumel, and, once it opens, Tulum.
Zuazua added that Viva Aerobus is in talks to partner with U.S. carrier Allegiant Air to connect small and medium-sized U.S. cities to the Mexican Caribbean, although initially, they would only operate domestic flights.
Despite an environmental assessment being conducted on the proposed terminal, building work, including clearing the jungle, has already started.
Local activists called the official public consultation on the airport’s impact on the environment in February a hoax because, according to President López Obrador himself, construction at the site was already 20% complete when the comment session began on January 9.