The Portuguese government’s high hopes for the practically ignored Beja airport to become a hub for low-cost airlines have been dashed. The blow to Beja came after the vice president of Ryanair publicly stated that the airport “does not interest” the Irish airline.

Beja Airport, which is located in Alentejo between Lisbon and the Algarve, was built before the global economic downturn. Circumstances have meant that the airport has received very little interest from commercial airlines.

The comment made by Ryanair’s Michael Cawley, seems to have irritated a number of local officials, who said that he has shown “ignorance” as to the airport’s clear potential. As well as expressing no interest in Beja, Cawley also commented that in his opinion the facility should never have been built.

Despite ruling out Beja as a viable option, Cawley has said that Ryanair are looking for a way to operate bargain flights to Lisbon which would compliment their successful current hubs in Faro and Porto. The airline wants to cater to the growing number of tourists jetting off to Lisbon as it continues to increase in popularity with interest as a city break destination showing no sign of abating, the city has once again been nominated for “Europe’s Best City Break Destination” in the 2012 World Travel Awards.

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