Picture wide skies over Vlora’s ancient salt flats, a glint of sunlight on new glass and steel, and the hopeful buzz you only find when something big is about to happen. This morning, the first certification flight at Vlora Airport broke the quiet with a roar (video)—officials and journalists in tow—welcoming Albania’s bold new entry into the world’s air corridors.
- Vlora Airport hosted its first certification flight, making history.
- High-ranking officials and international guests attended the event.
- Testing and preparations had taken place over several months.
- The airport is set to welcome travelers and tourists soon.
- Air Albania will establish its main base in Vlora; Air Kosova in Kukës.
- Former President of Kosovo, Behgjet Pacolli, arrived on an incoming flight.
- The facility covers 309 hectares, features a 3.2 km runway, and cost €104 million.
- It’s Albania’s new gateway to the south, designed for global and transoceanic flights.
- Seen as a strategic investment for boosting tourism and the local economy.
Sun, Cement, and New Promises
Let’s not tiptoe past the obvious: airports are usually best experienced in motion—tickets in hand, coffee in the other, heart beating with travel’s familiar mix of excitement and dread of lost luggage. But this time, the crowd consisted of suits, speeches, and cameras, as Albania’s Prime Minister, Edi Rama, stepped to the mic. Against the hum of new engines and the scent of fresh tarmac, he called it—Vlora’s future is tied to these runways. He didn’t hold back. This airport would be its most honest mirror if hope could be cast in concrete.
Rama offered more than speeches. In a moment that might’ve felt like a magician’s reveal, he flashed the official certificate for Air Kosova—no Photoshop here, just real paper with real weight. Air Albania would soon make Vlora its home, and Air Kosova would station itself up north in Kukës, prepping fleets and dreaming routes with a January 2025 takeoff circled in red.
A Gathering of Dreamers
It wasn’t just talk. Kosovo’s former president, Behgjet Pacolli, landed in style, stepping into the gathering straight from the brisk Albanian sky. His presence, along with a sea of dignitaries and local officials, signaled the airport’s role as more than a transport hub—it’s an invitation to step in, taste the southern breeze, and leave again with sun on your skin and a bit more Albanian dust on your shoes.
Numbers, Nuances, and What’s Ahead
With its 309 hectares stretching beyond the reeds, and an almost cinematic runway in length—3.2 kilometers, if anyone’s counting—Vlora Airport is built to handle just about anything with wings, from the puddle-jumpers to the giants that cross oceans. The €104 million price tag wasn’t just thrown at concrete and wires; it built a passport for Vlora’s future.
The airport is set to reshape southern Albania, bringing in visitors who might’ve otherwise missed its storied beaches and rugged history. Local tourism, long leaning on travelers who found their way by road, now prepares for a new kind of guest—those who arrive with sandy flip-flops packed, ready for all the smells, sights, and views Vlora can offer.
Closing the Chapter (For Now)
The Vlora Airport story—at least the part that starts with waiting and wishing—draws to a close. The first certification flight at Vlora Airport promises new connections and a new story for the city by the sea. There may be a few more speeches, a few late flights, and a round or two of applause. But soon, there’ll be boarding passes, fresh footprints in the terminal, and the unmistakable hum of adventure, carried on a salty southern wind.
