Naples Capodichino: the runway gets a makeover...maybe. Enac curbs enthusiasm (and schedule)
Only a few days ago, in a rare example of transparent planning, it had been announced with trumpet blasts that the closure [...]
NAP
Just a few days ago, in a rare example of transparent programming, it had been announced with trumpet blasts that Naples Capodichino Airport would be closed for as many as 42 days in 2026, just enough time to redo the runway and taxiways. An operational plan already detailed in detail: flights diverted to Salerno, companies informed, everything under control. Work begins on January 19 end March 1, 2026. Or so it seemed.
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But then, as in any good Italian comedy, Enac came along to spoil the party.
With a note worthy of a professor correcting the paper of the top of the class, the National Civil Aviation Authority let it be known that yes, it has received the feasibility project (only on May 14, 2025, a few days before the communiqué was sent), but that the executive project still lags behind. As a result, any timetable announced with such confidence is to be taken with tongs. Indeed, with welder's gloves, given the delicacy of the situation.
Translated: the airport has been reckoning without the innkeeper, and the innkeeper in question - Enac - is keen to remind us who is really in charge in the Italian skies. No approvals, no certainties, and a real risk that the famous "42 days" will become something very different ... or simply remain in the world of intentions.
Gesag's response to Enac's reply was not long in coming.
"The resurfacing of the runway at Naples Airport is one of the interventions that the airport operator must carry out so that the safety of flight operations and the efficiency of the infrastructure is always guaranteed, in compliance with the required standards. On 06.02.2025, the investment planning update with February 2026 estimate was sent to ENAC as the end date for the runway work, and on May 14, the project with the identified technical solutions was submitted. The 42 days of closure (from January 19 to March 1, 2026), were estimated based on in-depth technical-managerial evaluations that provide for the execution of the work during the time of year historically characterized by the least air traffic, in order to minimize inconvenience to users and seamlessly, for 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. GESAC has also seen fit to launch a preventive information campaign toward the institutions and economic stakeholders involved, in order to reduce the impact brought about by the necessary closure of a crucial infrastructure."
"Aware that safety represents a shared value between GESAC and ENAC, the single authority for technical regulation, certification, supervision and control in the civil aviation sector in Italy, and that we have taken the necessary measures towards stakeholders in advance, we confidently await ENAC's assessments to which GESAC will comply."
