Isla Air, the company which has spent five years seeking to launch commercial seaplane flights in the Balearics, says that it plans to offer a regular service between Palma and Ibiza before the end of 2024.
Toni Jiménez, Isla Air's representative in the Balearics, is due to meet the mayor of Palma, Jaime Martínez, and the president of the Council of Mallorca, Llorenç Galmés, some time this month in order to explain the details of the project. It is one that would improve connectivity between the islands without the need to expand airports.
With the town hall and the Council, it is mostly a case of getting their support. The competent authority in Palma is the Balearic Ports Authority, as it is at the other state ports in the Balearics.
There is also the Spanish Aviation Safety and Security Agency (AESA), which gave permission for a test flight in November that had to be called off because of bad weather.
The base in Palma would be at the Dique del Oeste. The planes (15 metres long and 15 metres wide) would land and take off outside the port. They have capacity for 19 passengers and two pilots. In the first phase, the plan is for flights between Palma and Ibiza and between Ibiza and Barcelona with a minimum of five per day. In a second phase the company wants to expand the service to Menorca and Formentera.
"We are talking about providing a public service 365 days a year, not only in high season. We will increase connectivity without affecting the airport and with a smaller environmental footprint," says Jiménez.
Isla Air has all the necessary EU authorisations and is backed by international capital from people linked to the Balearics who are said to have a direct interest in increasing air connectivity.