Colombia’s national government will have concessionaire Airplan build a new passenger terminal at José María Córdova International Airport in Rionegro, Antioquia, the airport that serves Medellín, while planning for a long-sought second runway moves to a land-purchase strategy with regional governments. Minister of Transport Elsa Noguera, a member of President Abelardo de la Espriella’s cabinet, outlined the plan during a political-control debate before the Comisión Sexta de la Cámara de Representantes (Sixth Committee of the House of Representatives), according to Valora Analitik, which reported her remarks on September 22, 2026.

Noguera said the airport’s existing runway still has the technical capacity to handle up to 37 million passengers a year, and that the immediate work will focus on the passenger building. “A new terminal for 20 million more passengers is required, with a single runway. The great pain of the paisas is that they already want to think about their second runway, because today they don’t have one, because it costs a lot,” she said, referring to the people of Antioquia. Valora Analitik reported that the new building is needed to lift the airport’s capacity above 17 million passengers a year.

The new terminal fits inside the existing contract

Noguera told the committee that Airplan’s current concession contract has room to absorb the terminal project, leaving only the building’s siting to be negotiated between the government and the concessionaire.

“Now, whether it will be built alongside or in front is something we will have to reconcile, but the good news is that the concession has room to build it.”

— Elsa Noguera, Minister of Transport of Colombia

That contract runs until 2032, according to a March 2026 release from the Ministerio de Transporte (Ministry of Transport). Noguera said the current concession will not be able to build the second runway. Instead, the national government will plan it together with the Gobernación de Antioquia (Antioquia Governor’s Office) and other territorial governments.

Land first, then a price freeze

Noguera said the Aeronáutica Civil (Civil Aviation Authority, known as Aerocivil) had previously issued an administrative act declaring the surrounding land of strategic importance in order to contain land prices, but that the measure collapsed because no funds were available to acquire the property. She described the message she sent to local governments: “(We are asking that) they start buying, and we will once again issue the administrative act that declares the strategic importance and freezes prices in the surrounding area, so that in the future they can have it.”

A master plan to 2055, with its studies under legal reserve

Aerocivil approved an update of the Plan Maestro Aeroportuario (Airport Master Plan) for José María Córdova through Resolution 01699 of May 26, 2026, signed by Acting Director General Luis Alfonso Martínez Chimenty and announced by the authority on August 4, 2026. The plan sets a 30-year roadmap and replaces the previous update, approved by Resolution 2487 of August 25, 2016.

According to Aerocivil, the plan rests on prefeasibility studies for the airport’s maximum expansion, feasibility studies for the first investment phase (known as PAL 1), and a feasibility study for a second runway covering the 2025–2030 and 2030–2035 periods. The technical consultancy was performed by Consorcio Aeropuerto Rionegro 30 and supervised by Consorcio INT PM Rionegro. Article 5 of the resolution directs the Ministry of Transport, the Agencia Nacional de Infraestructura (National Infrastructure Agency, ANI), the Instituto Nacional de Vías (National Roads Institute, Invías), the Antioquia Governor’s Office, and the mayors’ offices and planning departments of the Alcaldía de Rionegro (Rionegro Mayor’s Office) and the Alcaldía de Medellín (Medellín Mayor’s Office), among others, to align their land-use plans with the master plan, as required under Ley 388 de 1997 (Law 388 of 1997).

Aerocivil also stated that the plan is a guiding framework only, and that the execution of specific works and the allocation of budgets will each require separate legal authorizations. The authority placed the plan’s technical, financial, design and land studies under legal reserve, citing national security, aviation operational safety and the protection of critical state infrastructure.

Figures from the consulting consortium’s prefeasibility analysis and financial scheme, reported by Portafolio, put total investment at $22 trillion COP in constant 2024 pesos: 29% in a first phase through 2030, 49% in a second stage, 13% in a third stage through 2055, and 9% for land purchases and environmental management in the initial stage. The plan projects passenger traffic rising from 14 million in 2025 to 42.7 million in 2055, and air cargo from 119,000 tons to 202,900 tons a year. In the plan’s evaluation of how to deliver the second runway, a new public-private partnership concession scored 4.9 points against 4.7 for keeping the work inside Airplan’s current contract, according to Portafolio, with the transfer of risk to the contractor carrying the heaviest weight.

Stalled, then approved, then left out

In May 2025, Finance Colombia reported that the administration of former President Gustavo Petro had allocated funds only for the first stage of the master plan, and not for that stage’s land purchases, with Vice Minister of Infrastructure Liliana María Ospina stating that the second-runway phase “exceeds the current administration’s budgetary planning.” In July 2025, Finance Colombia reported that the Medellín Mayor’s Office said the national government had not formally responded to Mayor Federico Gutiérrez’s repeated requests for more immigration staff at the airport, or to the city’s offer of personnel and logistical support, as travelers reported immigration waits of up to six hours.

Near-term works also waited on the Petro government, and it ultimately cleared them. The contract amendment covering the works, otrosí 27, had been awaiting the signature of ANI’s vice president for contract management since December 2025, and the Ministry of Transport supplied the missing sign-off on March 26, 2026, according to El Tiempo. The same day, the ministry and ANI announced a $167 billion COP program for six airports in the country’s center-north: Rionegro, Medellín, Montería, Carepa, Quibdó and Corozal. The ministry said the works would be carried out by the concessionaire “without modifying the current contract,” and that Rionegro, which handles about 14 million passengers a year against an installed capacity of 11 million, would be expanded to 17 million. “More and more Colombians are flying, and our infrastructure has to be up to that reality,” then-Minister of Transport María Fernanda Rojas said in the release.

The ministry started construction on April 24, 2026. The works include a remote boarding lounge with six gates, new aircraft stands, additional check-in positions and security lanes, and upgrades to baggage handling and immigration, with the goal of raising capacity to 28 operations per hour. The project had reached 24% completion by mid-September, Infobae reported, citing ANI.

In July 2026, however, José María Córdova was left out of Conpes 4205, the national airport-investment policy document of the Consejo Nacional de Política Económica y Social (National Council for Economic and Social Policy), which El Tiempo reported commits $6.54 trillion COP through 2035 to airports not under concession. In a response reported by Blu Radio, Aerocivil said the airport was excluded because, under its concession, “the obligations for maintenance, improvement and expansion of the airport infrastructure are the contractual responsibility of the concessionaire, financed with its own resources or through the remuneration mechanisms provided for in that contract.” Blu Radio reported that Medellín’s Olaya Herrera airport is also absent from the document, and that the Ernesto Cortissoz airport in Atlántico and the Alfonso Bonilla Aragón airport were not prioritized either. Concejo de Medellín (Medellín City Council) President Alejandro De Bedout called the exclusion “a political decision,” Blu Radio reported.

Noguera has placed the second runway outside the current concession and has asked local governments to begin buying the land around the airport. Aerocivil’s feasibility study for the runway covers 2025 through 2035, and the authority states that budgets for the master plan’s works still require separate authorization. Airplan’s contract expires in 2032.

Headline photo: The passenger terminal and apron at José María Córdova International Airport in Rionegro, Antioquia. (Photo courtesy Aerocivil)

Brazilian soccer club Chapecoense arrives in Medellín on Thursday, September 24, for a four-day visit marking 10 years since the LaMia air disaster in La Unión, Antioquia. The visit is part of a program, announced by the Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín in a September 22 release, that runs through September 29 and includes the unveiling of a memorial at the crash site, a groundbreaking for a larger monument in the town, and a friendly match against Atlético Nacional at Medellín’s Estadio Atanasio Girardot on Saturday, September 26.

On the night of November 28, 2016, an aircraft of the private Bolivian airline LaMia went down on a hillside in the vereda (rural district) of Pantalio, in La Unión, near José María Córdova International Airport in Rionegro, which serves Medellín. The crash killed 71 of the people on board, who were Brazilian, Bolivian, Paraguayan and Venezuelan nationals, as Chapecoense traveled to face Atlético Nacional in the final of the 2016 Copa Sudamericana. Six people survived. Colombia’s Aeronáutica Civil (Civil Aviation Authority) later concluded that the aircraft had run out of fuel. At Atlético Nacional’s request, CONMEBOL declared Chapecoense the 2016 champion, according to El Deportivo. The consulate describes the match as a tribute to the Campeones del Cielo (Champions of the Sky), the name given to the victims.

The visit also includes a cornerstone ceremony for a larger, second monument in La Unión that, according to the regional sportswriters’ association ACORD Antioquia, is financed by a group of Brazilian and Colombian companies. Builders affiliated with Camacol Antioquia, the regional chapter of Colombia’s construction chamber, are also backing the project, according to the consulate.

Airport Reception and a Ceremony at the Crash Site

The delegation will be received on Thursday afternoon at José María Córdova airport by staff of Airplan, the concessionaire that operates the terminal, whose employees supported the survivors in the hours after the crash, according to the consulate. On Friday morning, Atlético Nacional will hold a ceremony for the visitors at its training facility in Guarne, in eastern Antioquia.

That afternoon, the Brazilian delegation of players, coaching staff, club directors, press and invited guests will travel to Pantalio, to the hill where the aircraft came down, which the consulate says was renamed Cerro Chapecoense shortly after the accident. The ceremony there includes a prayer, the unveiling of the first memorial to the victims, remarks by local and Brazilian officials, and the raising of the flags of Brazil, Chapecoense and the municipality of La Unión. The memorial is a monolith clad in black marble and inscribed with references to the tragedy. It was donated by the Eco Parque Chapecoense, according to ACORD Antioquia.

The Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana (Colombian Aerospace Force), known as the Fuerza Aérea Colombiana (Colombian Air Force) at the time of the crash, led the rescue of that night’s survivors and the transfer of the victims’ remains. The consulate said the force may fly over the site during the ceremony if weather and operational conditions allow.

The altimeter from the LaMia aircraft, kept by residents of La Unión and being donated to Chapecoense. (Photo courtesy Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín)

Residents of the area have kept components of the aircraft in a Chapecoense museum in La Unión. At the ceremony, they will donate to the club the aircraft’s altimeter, which the consulate says carries symbolic information from the moment of the crash. The instrument will go to the club’s own museum in Chapecó, Brazil. ACORD Antioquia reported that club president Alex Boff Passos will receive a piece from the local memorial museum on behalf of Chapecoense.

Groundbreaking for the Memorial La Unión–Chapecó

From the hillside, the delegation will move to the 19 de Diciembre sports complex in the center of La Unión, where the Alcaldía de La Unión (La Unión Mayor’s Office) has designated land for a larger monument, the Memorial La Unión–Chapecó. Camacol Antioquia is organizing the cornerstone ceremony with the mayor’s office, the municipal council and the consulate. The sculptors who worked on both memorials will attend.

Design renderings and a reference image for the Memorial La Unión–Chapecó. (Image courtesy Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín)

ACORD Antioquia reported that the project has been led for several years by Sergio Escobar Solórzano, whom El Colombiano identified as Brazil’s honorary consul in Antioquia. El Colombiano reported in May that the design includes a circular plaza for commemorative events, a wall of plaques, 71 beams of light projected into the night sky, one for each victim, and a park of Colombian and Brazilian flags, and that sculptors Nelson Agustín Agudelo and Carolina Castaño would build it. Under that plan, Camacol Antioquia would supply materials and design, the municipality would provide labor, and Brazilian manufacturer WEG (B3: WEGE3; OTC: WEGZY), which the newspaper said has offices in Rionegro, would contribute energy components. Ferney Lotero, first vice president of the La Unión municipal council, told the newspaper: “Hay muchas empresas que van a aportar” (Many companies are going to contribute). The target then was completion by the 10th anniversary in November, and the newspaper reported that the final budget had not been set. The consulate’s release does not give an updated completion date or budget.

Site plan and aerial rendering of the Memorial La Unión–Chapecó prepared with Camacol Antioquia. (Image courtesy Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín)

The Partido de la Amistad Eterna at the Atanasio Girardot

Atlético Nacional and Chapecoense meet on Saturday, September 26, at 3:30 p.m. in the Partido de la Amistad Eterna (Match of Eternal Friendship), which its organizer has described as a reunion that transcends soccer. The consulate’s release and the promotional poster list a 4 p.m. start, while ACORD Antioquia and Deportes RCN report 3:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale through Atlético Nacional’s Tribuna Verde platform. Deportes RCN reported single-ticket prices, including service and delivery charges, ranging from $44,648 COP for the gramilla (field level) and the north and south stands to $190,230 COP for the platea (premium seating) section, with lower prices for season-ticket holders.

Promotional poster for the Partido de la Amistad Eterna between Atlético Nacional and Chapecoense. (Image courtesy Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín)

Before kickoff, organizers plan to recognize people the consulate calls the “invisible heroes” of the night of the crash, followed by remarks from local and Brazilian representatives.

A Documentary Trailer and a Donation to a Rural School

On Sunday, September 27, at 11 a.m., Medellín production company Roca Films will present the trailer of the documentary Chapecó: El último sobreviviente, nace una hermandad (Chapecó: The Last Survivor, a Brotherhood Is Born) to the Brazilian delegation and the press. According to the consulate, the film reconstructs previously unpublished details of the tragedy and honors the survivors, in particular one of the club’s players, who will attend the screening. The film’s poster credits Edison Vanegas Álvarez as director. In November 2017, Noticias Caracol reported on a 42-minute documentary titled El último sobreviviente, directed by Edison Vanegas, then head of communications for the Policía Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (Valle de Aburrá Metropolitan Police), about the rescue of Chapecoense defender Helio Zampier Neto.

Poster for the documentary Chapecó: El último sobreviviente, nace una hermandad, produced by Roca Films. (Image courtesy Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín)

The final event takes place on Tuesday, September 29, when Colombian and international companies with ties to Brazil will donate a set of kitchen appliances to the Centro Educativo Rural La Almería (La Almería Rural Education Center), at its Pantalio campus, for use by its students, teachers and staff. According to the consulate, residents along the road leading to Cerro Chapecoense have decorated the route in the colors of the Brazilian flag.

Headline photo: The black marble monolith memorial to the victims of the 2016 LaMia crash, to be unveiled at Cerro Chapecoense in La Unión, Antioquia. (Image courtesy Honorary Consulate of Brazil in Medellín)

Wingo, a subsidiary of Copa Holdings (NYSE: CPA), has announced the launch of two new direct international routes from Medellín to Guatemala City, Guatemala, and Montego Bay, Jamaica. With this expansion, the carrier becomes the only airline to operate these specific nonstop segments from José María Córdova International Airport in Rionegro, which serves the Antioquia region.

The new service increases Wingo’s international portfolio to 10 destinations from the city, complementing its existing network of five domestic routes. According to data provided by the airline, Medellín has become a primary operational base in Colombia. In 2025, approximately 35% of the carrier’s total passenger traffic, representing 1.2 million travelers, originated from or arrived in the city.

“Medellín is a strategic city for Wingo, and these two new routes reflect our confidence in the potential of the city and the response of travelers.” — Jorge Jiménez, Commercial and Planning Vice President of Wingo.

The Alcaldía de Medellín, through the Secretaría de Turismo y Entretenimiento and the Bureau de Medellín y Antioquia, coordinated with airport concessionaire Airplan to facilitate the new frequencies. The Medellín to Guatemala City route is scheduled to begin operations on June 25, 2026, with three weekly frequencies on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The airline expects to offer 30,000 seats annually on this route, with one-way fares starting at $108 USD, including taxes and fees.

The connection to Montego Bay is slated for a June 23, 2026, start date, also operating three times per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Introductory fares for the Jamaican destination are positioned at $159 USD per trayect. This move follows a 2025 pilot program where Jamaica was marketed as a high-interest destination for Colombian travelers.

Jorge Jiménez, Commercial and Planning Vice President at Wingo, stated that these routes reflect confidence in the potential of the city and the response of travelers to direct, low-cost international options. Ana María López Acosta, Secretary of Tourism and Entertainment, noted that the collaboration between the public and private sectors continues to project the city as an attractive destination for tourism and investment.

The expansion comes as the Aeropuerto Internacional José María Córdova continues to increase its capacity as a logistical platform for the country. Javier Benítez, Manager of the airport, indicated that the arrival of these routes reaffirms the facility’s potential to facilitate international business and connection for the region.

Click above to watch video

In addition to JetSmart’s domestic operations, starting with three Airbus A320neo aircraft, the airline has already been flying international routes between Medellín, Lima Peru, and Santiago, Chile.

Travelers will be able to take advantage of exclusive discounts on domestic routes with tickets starting at $47,800 Colombian pesos (including fees and taxes) or about $13 US Dollars.

Jetsmart also announced Thursday that the airline’s Colombian base of operations will be at the José María Córdova International Airport in Rionegro, Colombia; a suburb of Medellín.  CEO Estuardo Ortíz (above photo, left) credited the work of the mayoral administrations of Medellín, Rionegro, the Governor of Antioquia, and Airport operations contractor Airplan.

“We believe, trust and invest in Colombia, and especially today we are committed to the region of Antioquia and its more than six and a half million inhabitants, to contribute to tourism, development and connectivity of all communities, just as we have already done with the 25 million people who have already flown with us throughout South America. We want the region to go out into the world, and for Antioquia, Medellín and the region to connect from the airport in Rionegro to more destinations and frequencies, both domestic and international. Our new operation in Colombia is an important step in our vision of 100 million passengers and 100 aircraft by 2028,” said Ortíz.

JetSmart launched a total of eight direct routes from Medellín to Santa Marta, Cartagena and Bogotá; and from Bogota, to Cartagena, Pereira, Santa Marta and Medellín, as well as from Cartagena to Pereira and Cali. These domestic routes are in addition to the seven international routes that JetSmart flies from Medellín to Chile and Peru, with connections to Argentina and Uruguay. Codeshare agreements will provide connectivity north to the United States through American Airlines, and JetSmart has announced coming participation to American Airlines’ AAdvantage loyalty program.

JetSmart is part of the airline portfolio of U.S. investment fund Indigo Partners, along with airlines Frontier in the United States, WizzAir in Europe, Volaris in Mexico and Cebu Pacific in Asia.

Indigo Partners Principal Brian Franke (above photo, right) said that “We are looking forward to the start of JetSMART’s domestic operations in Colombia and continue to invest in the region to develop the ultra-low-cost model. We see tremendous growth potential in Colombia, and as we expand JetSmart we continue to provide affordable air travel to more people and communities.”

Operating Out Of Terminal 2 In Bogotá

Thursday morning, JetSmart celebrated its Colombian domestic launch with a press conference in the Puente Aereo, or Terminal 2 of Bogotá’s El Dorado International Airport. Bogotá airport operator OPAIN renovated parts of Terminal 2 with new chairs and seating areas, installing Veripax technology for digital reading of boarding passes, and an exclusive area for VIP and official travelers. They also expanded the gate areas, remodeled the bathrooms, installed new floors and charging areas.

“We celebrate the start of JetSMART’s domestic operations in the country, as this strengthens the sector and boosts El Dorado’s position as the main hub for connection to the regions of Colombia. We have adapted Terminal 2 – the former Air Bridge, so that travelers can take their domestic flights in a more comfortable and agile way,”  said Natalí Leal, General Manager of OPAIN.

It is important that domestic passengers flying JetSmart from Bogotá keep in mind that flights leave from Terminal 2, while international flights still arrive and depart from the main terminal. There is a free shuttle that travels between the two airport terminals. Travelers must allow adequate time for transfers, and if necessary, immigration for international flights. Passengers arriving to El Dorado International Airport for domestic JetSmart flights should be explicit with transportation providers that they will be departing from Terminal 2 or “El Puente Aereo.”

The Latam pilot deserves credit for a safe landing despite a broken landing gear, with zero injuries.

The airport’s emergency firefighters were deployed, and priority was given for the stricken plane to return and land.  The pilot was able to successfully land the plane, destroying the forward landing gear, but also damaging the newly repaired runway, that had undergone major maintenance the previous month.

The airport remained closed for 14 hours, with arriving flights being redirected, and departing flights canceled or rescheduled.

Aeronáutica Civil, Colombia’s civil aviation authority, issued a statement regarding the incident saying (translated):

Aeronáutica Civil wishes to inform you that at 3:12pm today, Tuesday, March 29^th, an A-320 aircraft belonging to Latam, with tail registration CC—BAS that covers the Medellín – Cartagena route had to return to the José Maria Córdova airport in Rionegro, and perform an emergency landing.

The aircraft’s crew detected a failure in one of the forward landing gear after takeoff. As such, they decided to overfly the airport area of Rionegro to consume part of the fuel, and land safely.

The landing was made in a controlled manner and in safe conditions for the occupants of the aircraft and the personnel on the ground. The emergency was attended by the aviation firefighters corps, and Emergency and Maintenance Services personnel.

The airport’s director of operations, Javiér Benitez said that removing the disabled aircraft was a complex procedure, as the normal tugs that move aircraft around on the ground could not be used. Benitez said that Aerocivil along with airport operation company Airplan coordinated with assistance provided by competing airlines Avianca and Viva to ensure safety and return the airport to operation. A 100 ton crane was brought in, but the thin aluminum skin of a commercial jet is not designed to support even partial weight of the aircraft. The fuselage was gently lifted, allowing the broken front gear to be placed on a low-bed vehicle, and the aircraft was eventually moved to an area allowing safety and forensic inspections, while the runway could be repaired and reopened.

Latam has stated that its passengers affected by the emergency may reschedule or obtain refunds without penalty.

Local media were able to obtain video of the heart-stopping landing. Video courtesy El Colombiano:

FlightAware ADS-B tracking shows the plane circling to burn fuel before returning for an emergency landing.

ADS-B transponder tracking provided courtesy FlightAware.

Photos courtesy Aerocivil

No commercial flights will operate for 2 stretches of 36 straight hours to perform runway maintenance.

The airport closure is necessary, says Airplan’s Ana Lucía Pérez Mesa, in order to perform runway maintenance and repairs, and the shutdown has been coordinated with the commercial passenger and freight carriers that use the airport.

“As part of the Airplan maintenance program, periodic measurements are undertaken to ascertain the runway pavement condition. Based on recent measurements, actions are necessary to guarantee the maximum useful life and operational safety (of the runway). After carrying out some measurements, we determined that the runway should be [repaired] in two areas in order to restore optimal conditions and extend the runway’s remaining lifespan,” said airport manager Fredy Jaramillo Giraldo.

• ·        First closing: Saturday, February 19 from 2 a.m. m. until Sunday, February 20 at 2 p.m. m. (36 hours).
• ·        Second closing: Saturday, February 26 from 2 a.m. m. until Sunday February 27 at 2 pm (36 hours).

The work to be done requires extended periods of time to guarantee quality, so will take place over two consecutive weekends for a total of 72 hours of closure.

“We are aware of the discomfort and inconvenience that these works generate in the public, so we reiterate that they are necessary to ensure safety of everyone, and together with the airlines and authorities, all options were pursued so that airport operation is impacted as little as possible,” added Giraldo.

Also read: “Bla Bla Bla!” Avianca Denounced By Colombia’s Vice President, Celebrities For Turning Its Back On Passengers

Above photo: A General Dynamics F-16 belonging to the US Air Force Thunderbirds takes off from Medellín’s International Airport  during the 2019 semi-annual F-AIR air show (photo © Loren Moss)