This is a total disgrace that this has been left right to the last few days, with people not able to book flight to and from Porto Santo for months now after the August 22nd date. It happens every time the contract is coming to an end and no dates add for booking until everything is signed, this has been left right at the last minute this year, causing huge frustrations for residents needing to book flights for medical appointments.
As already reported this morning, the Spanish airline Binter will continue to operate the Madeira – Porto Santo route at least until February 23, 2024, after the concession contract has been extended by the Government of the Republic.
In a statement sent to the newsroom, Binter recalls that it was the concessionaire of this public service obligation route (OSP) in 2018 for a period of three years, a contract that was renewed for another three years and that, since then, has been extended for periods of four or six months. Note that the current extension expired on August 23, 2023.
“Binter has been connecting the Madeira and Canary Islands for almost two decades and, since 2018, the islands of Madeira and Porto Santo, transporting more than half a million passengers on more than 12,000 flights”, highlights the company, which underlines that it maintains continuous contact with local administrations, to establish synergies that allow progress in connectivity.
“Currently, it works together with Turismo da Madeira in promoting the destination, through different dynamization actions, to favor the development of direct connections between the archipelago and the outside world”, he maintains.
The airline operates four daily flights between the two islands of the Portuguese archipelago, with two departures from Madeira (FNC) and two from Porto Santo (PXO).
On the same note, the company recalls that, since July, Binter has replicated its summer 2022 operation, with direct connections from Madeira (FNC) to Porto Santo (PXO), Marrakech (RAK), Fuerteventura (FUE), Lanzarote (ACE ) and Tenerife South (TFS), in addition to year-round operations to Tenerife North (TFN) and Gran Canaria (LPA).