New Kasteli Airport Launches Operational Readiness Process as Radar Installation Work Resumes

Preparations for the operational transition to the new Heraklion Crete International Airport at Kasteli have formally begun, with the first meeting between airport management and key users held last week. Earthworks for radar installation on Papura Hill are expected to resume within days, after being suspended following a legal challenge.

The inaugural session launched the Operational Readiness, Activation and Transition (ORAT) programme, bringing together the management of the Heraklion Crete International Airport (ΔΑΗΚ) with representatives of the airport and aviation community. The meeting covered construction progress, a three-dimensional rendering of the new facility, and coordination requirements for a smooth transition. Attendees included executives and representatives of Aegean Airlines, Aerocandia, Bluebird Air, EKO, Goldair Handling, Gissco, HAFCO, HASP, Sky Express, Skyserv, Swissport, and the Hellenic Police. "Today we are meeting for the first time with what I consider the most important stakeholders of the new airport: its users," said Nikos Anastasiou, CEO of the Heraklion Crete International Airport. "We are committed to being direct and transparent about what is feasible, realistic and achievable."

The radar earthworks had been suspended following a legal challenge filed by the Municipality of Minoa Pediados before the Council of State against the siting of air navigation systems. The court recently rejected that challenge, and the written ruling is expected to be finalised imminently. Overall construction progress on the GEK Terna site has reached 75%, with the project remaining on track for its target opening date of November 2028.

New airport openings of this scale typically move on two separate tracks that have to converge at the same date: physical construction of terminals and runways, and the parallel buildout and legal clearance of air navigation infrastructure such as radar siting. The ORAT process exists precisely because a finished terminal with an unresolved navigation system is not an operational airport, and bringing airlines, ground handlers and police into coordination this early signals that the operator is treating the transition itself as a distinct project phase rather than an afterthought to construction.

The rejection of the Municipality of Minoa Pediados' challenge before the Council of State removes a legal obstacle that had paused physical works on Papura Hill, but the written ruling has not yet been finalised, which is the next formal step to watch. With construction at 75% and a November 2028 target, the remaining runway for ORAT coordination among the named carriers and handlers will depend on how quickly the radar works, once resumed, catch up to the rest of the site.