Toluca International Airport (); officially ''Aeropuerto Internacional Licenciado Adolfo López Mateos'' (Licenciado Adolfo López Mateos International Airport) is an

international airport An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports, and feature longer runways and have faciliti ...

Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the States of Mexico, state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. Toluca has a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the Grea ...

State of Mexico The State of Mexico, officially just Mexico, is one of the 32 federal entities of the United Mexican States. Colloquially known as Edomex (from , the abbreviation of , and ), to distinguish it from the name of the whole country, it is the mo ...

, Mexico. It handles both national and international air traffic for the Metropolitan area of Toluca and serves as a secondary airport for

Greater Mexico City Greater Mexico City is the conurbation around Mexico City, officially called the Metropolitan Area of the Valley of Mexico (). It encompasses Mexico City itself and 60 adjacent municipalities of Mexico, municipalities of the State of Mexico and Hi ...

, alongside Felipe Angeles Airport. Historically serving as a hub for

Volaris Volaris (legally ''Concesionaria Vuela Compañía de Aviación S.A.B. de C.V.'') is a Mexican low-cost airline based in Santa Fe, Mexico City, Santa Fe, Álvaro Obregón, Mexico City, Álvaro Obregón, Mexico City with its operating bases in Canc ...

Interjet InterJet was a private jet charter operator in the Greek business aviation market. InterJet was based in Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal ...

, and Republicair, the airport is operated by ''Administradora Mexiquense del Aeropuerto Internacional de Toluca'' and is named after President

Adolfo López Mateos Adolfo López Mateos (; 26 May 1909 – 22 September 1969) was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as President of Mexico from 1958 to 1964. Previously, he served as Secretariat of Labor and Social Welfare, Secretary of Labor and Social ...

. Toluca Airport serves as the primary airport for operating executive and

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

traffic in the Greater Mexico City airspace, ranking fifth busiest in Mexico for both aircraft movements and cargo operations. It serves as a primary base for charter airlines such as Aerolíneas Ejecutivas, Aeromaan, Aviesa, Flymex, and a hub for the cargo airline TUM AeroCarga. The airport also accommodates cargo and aircraft maintenance facilities, and services for air taxis, air ambulances, and aviation schools. It served 1,704,011 passengers in 2024.

History

The development of Toluca Airport has been significantly shaped by efforts to address congestion challenges at

Mexico City International Airport Mexico City International Airport (); officially ''Aeropuerto Internacional Benito Juárez'' (Benito Juárez International Airport) is the primary international airport serving Greater Mexico City. It is the List of the busiest airports in Me ...

, stemming from urban constraints since the 1980s. Construction of Toluca Airport commenced in 1970, with its inauguration taking place in 1984. In 1994, the federal government implemented legislation to mitigate congestion at Mexico City International Airport by prohibiting

operations and redirecting them to secondary airports like Toluca. Consequently, Toluca Airport's importance increased, managing the majority of general aviation traffic in the Mexico City airspace. Political initiatives have also been introduced to establish nearby airports, including Toluca, along with

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

Cuernavaca Cuernavaca (; , "near the woods" , Otomi language, Otomi: ) is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state, state of Morelos in Mexico. Along with Chalcatzingo, it is likely one of the origins of the Mesoamerica, Mesoamerican civilizatio ...

, and

Querétaro Querétaro, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Querétaro, 18 municipalities. Its capital city is Querétaro Cit ...

, as supplementary options for serving the Mexico City area. This initiative, known as the Metropolitan Airport System, was promoted by the federal administration. Volaris A319 Toluca

During the 2000s, Toluca Airport played a pivotal role in the initial growth of low-cost carriers in Mexico.

and

, key players in this sector, established Toluca as their primary hub, each operating from independent terminals until 2007. The airport experienced a substantial increase in passenger traffic from 145,000 in 2002 to 4,300,000 in 2008, leading to renovations and expansions. During this period, other airlines, including Aeromexico Connect,

Click Mexicana MexicanaClick, formerly Click Mexicana, was Mexicana's regional operator, serving most of Mexicana's domestic routes between more than 25 Mexican cities. It was founded as a low-cost carrier, but changed its market to regional operations after i ...

, Republicair, and TAESA Airlines, served Toluca. The airport provided international service to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

through

Continental Express Continental Express was the brand name used by a number of independently owned regional airlines providing commuter airliner and regional jet feeder service under agreement with Continental Airlines. In 2010 at the time of Continental's merger ...

and

Spirit Airlines Spirit Airlines, Inc. is an American ultra-low cost airline headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Spirit was the ...

, as well as to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

through Air Madrid. However, following Mexicana's bankruptcy in 2011, Volaris relocated its hub to

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

, and Interjet shifted operations to Mexico City, resulting in a consistent decline in passenger traffic from 1,161,064 in 2013 to 134,305 by 2021. Consequently, Toluca Airport consolidated its operations, reducing its terminals from four to two, with all activities now centralized at the Domestic Terminal. Toluca currently stands as the largest metropolitan area in Mexico without any international flight services. Most travellers to Toluca opt for Mexico City International Airport, located less than to the east, offering extensive connectivity through highways and bus services. The recent inauguration of Mexico City-Felipe Angeles Airport has introduced additional challenges in attracting commercial flights. Flight figures have fluctuated, with a significant rebound after 2022 when Volaris, Viva Aerobus, and

TAR Tar is a dark brown or black viscous liquid of hydrocarbons and free carbon, obtained from a wide variety of organic materials through destructive distillation. Tar can be produced from coal, wood, petroleum, or peat. "a dark brown or black b ...

resumed commercial services, resulting in a traffic volume of over 1.7 million passengers by the end of 2024.

Facilities

The airport is situated northeast of

city center and west of affluent neighborhoods like Santa Fe in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. Its elevated location at imposes payload restrictions on

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

. Consequently, the airport boasts a

runway In aviation, a runway is an elongated, rectangular surface designed for the landing and takeoff of an aircraft. Runways may be a human-made surface (often asphalt concrete, asphalt, concrete, or a mixture of both) or a natural surface (sod, ...

, the second longest in Mexico after Felipe Ángeles International Airport, and is the first in Mexico equipped with ILS CAT II/IIIA approaches. The passenger terminal, a single-story structure, includes arrival and departure facilities with standard services. These encompass parking, check-in, security, a VIP lounge, snack bars, shops, immigration and customs facilities, baggage-claim areas, car rental services, taxi stands, and a departure concourse with 15 gates providing direct apron access for passengers to board by walking to their aircraft. The airport also features multiple aprons and facilities for general and executive aviation, hosting logistics and courier companies. Administrative facilities and multiple hangars cater to

air taxi An air taxi is a small commercial aircraft that makes short flights on demand. History The concept of air taxis existed as early as the 1910s. This concept goes back as early as 1917 with Glenn Curtiss’ prototype, the auto-plane. Furthermor ...

, VIP charters, aircraft management,

air ambulance Air medical services are the use of aircraft, including both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters to provide various kinds of urgent medical care, especially prehospital, emergency and critical care to patients during aeromedical evacuation an ...

, cargo, and aircraft repair operations.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

As of August 2024, the airport only served domestic flights.

Cargo

As of 2024, FedEx Express is the only airline to serve cargo flights from Toluca to Memphis, which operates weekly.

Destinations map

Statistics

Passengers

Top destinations

Ground transportation

The primary transportation to and from the airport is currently by road, with car rental and taxi services available. The airport lacks consistent public transport, private shuttles, and bus services. However, a shuttle connecting to the Toluca-Mexico City train line ''

El Insurgente ''El Insurgente'' () is a commuter rail line between the State of Mexico and Mexico City that is partially operational. Also known as Interurban Train Mexico City–Toluca, the passenger railway line will connect the cities of Toluca and Me ...

'' is expected to start in 2024, connecting to the Metepec railway station and improving overall accessibility.

References

External links

*
Official Website
* *
Toluca Airport information
at Great Circle Mapper
Accident history for TLC
at

Aviation Safety Network The Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) is a non-profit, international organization concerning research, education, advocacy, and communications in the field of aviation safety. FSF brings together aviation professionals to help solve safety problems ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toluca International Airport Airports in Mexico Airports in the State of Mexico Transportation in Mexico Transportation in the State of Mexico Transportation in Mexico City Infrastructure in Mexico City Tourist attractions in the State of Mexico Military installations of Mexico Mexico City metropolitan area Toluca 1984 establishments in Mexico Airports established in 1984 Economy of the State of Mexico