It's hard to imagine a developed nation having an abandoned airport capable of handling transcontinental flights. Yet, that's the case with Spain. When the Iberian nation was feeling flush, a rush to build new airports took hold. This phenomenon manifested itself most ambitiously with a grand facility intended to service Madrid. (Anyone who has landed at or departed from the Spanish capital will appreciate the need for more runways and terminals.)
Alas, the newly minted airport at Ciudad Real lived a short commercial life, opening in 2008 and going bust four years later. One could suppose its extremely inconvenient location and the financial disaster of that time led to its demise. Since 2012, the structure has looked as ruined as the background of a dystopian movie set.
According to a BBC report, the billion-dollar airport was sold for 10,000 Euros to a Chinese consortium. The Asian business group will use their new possession to provide entry for Chinese firms and goods.
"Ruin porn," such as the photographic images of the airport, have a certain cachet today. The shambles of Detroit, structures from the former Soviet Union, and buildings in Palermo (skillfully photographed by Letizia Battaglia), are among the settings that have attenuated interest in empires whose grandeur or oomph have passed. The obvious inference from this interest is an unconscious belief that the current world is undergoing an "evolution" for which Detroit, Moscow, or Sicily may be harbingers.
This reflective stance also suggests that the future feels both unknown and a little creepy. That's certainly the case at an abandoned airport whose presence serves as a visual signpost at the intersection of the past, present, and future.
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