Corfu and Santorini airports close for runway works

The news in Greek

1. αεροδρόμιο  (n.)
   χώρος όπου φτάνουν και φεύγουν αεροπλάνα, με κτίρια και διαδρόμους πτήσεων ↩︎
2. προσωρινός
   για λίγο χρονικό διάστημα και όχι για πάντα ↩︎
3. διάδρομος  (m.)
   μακρύς και στενός χώρος για να περπατάς ή, στα αεροδρόμια, ο χώρος όπου απογειώνονται και προσγειώνονται αεροπλάνα ↩︎
4. κανονικός  (f.)
   όπως γίνεται συνήθως, χωρίς κάτι ειδικό ή διαφορετικό ↩︎
5. ιατρικός  (f.)
   που έχει σχέση με την ιατρική ή με την υγεία και τους γιατρούς ↩︎
6. διάσωση  (f.)
   η πράξη να σώζεις κάποιον από κίνδυνο ή θάνατο ↩︎

Translation

Text comprehension

Question 1: From which date do normal flights stop at the airports of Corfu and Santorini?

Question 2: What types of flights are still allowed while the airports are closed?

Vocabulary

Greek	English
αεροδρόμιο  (n.)	airport
προσωρινός	temporarily
διάδρομος  (m.)	runway / corridor
κανονικός  (f.)	normal
ιατρικός  (f.)	medical
διάσωση  (f.)	rescue

Read the full story

The Greek island airports of Corfu and Santorini have been placed under a **temporary suspension of flight operations** in order to allow major runway renovation works to go ahead.

According to the operator Fraport Greece, which manages 14 regional airports in the country, both airports stopped normal flight activity on 12 January 2026. The airport in Corfu (CFU) is scheduled to remain closed until 26 January 2026, while the airport in Santorini (JTR) is expected to reopen earlier, on 19 January 2026.

The works focus on the reconstruction and upgrading of the runways, used for both take-offs and landings. Fraport Greece had already announced during the summer of 2025 that similar projects would take place at several regional airports, including Zante (Zakynthos), Kefalonia, Corfu, Samos, Rhodes, Mytilene, Mykonos and Santorini. The aim, according to the company’s planning, is to modernise infrastructure and improve safety and capacity ahead of future tourist seasons.

During the closure period, regular passenger flights with aeroplanes are not operating to or from the two islands. However, both sources stress that emergency flights may still take place. These include medical airlifts, search-and-rescue operations, firefighting missions, humanitarian flights, and other flights of national or state importance. Such operations can be carried out using helicopters, which are less dependent on the full use of the main runway.

Although the runways are temporarily out of service, the airports themselves are not completely shut down. The reports note that all other airport services continue to function. This means that facilities such as administrative offices, ground handling services, and other forms of support for the local communities remain available during the construction period.

The temporary closures come during the winter season, when tourist traffic to the islands is significantly lower than in summer. This timing, as described by the operator, is intended to limit disruption for travellers and local businesses that depend on tourism, while still allowing the necessary infrastructure upgrades to be completed.

Different Greek news outlets emphasise slightly different aspects of the story. Some focus on the practical impact on flights and the exact dates of closure and reopening. Others highlight the wider investment plan by Fraport Greece across several islands. Taken together, the reports present the closures as planned, short-term interruptions that form part of a broader programme to update regional airports in Greece.

Info: ‘Greek Learner News’ is a service from ‘Let’s Learn Greek’, a language school offering various types of online Greek courses, where we share articles and updates to help readers with Greek learn in a structured and consistent way.