Army assumes control of Mexico’s air sector

MEXICO - The federal government, under the leadership of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, officially handed over control of the airports of Chetumal, in Quintana Roo; Tamuín, in San Luis Potosí, and Ixtepec, in Oaxaca, to the Army.

The Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF) informed that the company "Grupo Aeroportuario, Ferroviario, de Servicios Auxiliares y Conexos, Olmeca-Maya-Mexica", S.A. de C.V., which belongs to the Ministry of National Defense (Sedena), will be the holder of the assignment of these three Mexican airports.

The decree states that "the Federal Civil Aviation Agency (AFAC) may determine specific rates and prices".

Sedena's company is authorized to use and lease surfaces included in the airport infrastructure, in addition to granting rights of use or rights of way over them.

Sedena, which also took control of the new airline Mexicana de Aviación, received the assignment of the Hermanos Serdán Airport in the state of Puebla, as well as that of Uruapan, Michoacán, and the airport of Palenque, the city in Chiapas where López Obrador will live once his six-year term is over.

It also received the concession for the Puerto Escondido Airport in Chiapas, where the armed forces are building a tourist complex.

In other words, in the last week of November alone, the Army took control of seven airports distributed throughout the country to operate and exploit them commercially.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that the Army is also in charge of the new airport in Tulum, Quintana Roo.