Verona Villafranca Airport , also known as Valerio Catullo Airport or Villafranca Airport, is located southwest of Verona, Italy. The airport is situated next to the junction of A4 Milan-Venice and A22 Modena-Brenner motorways. It serves a population of more than 4 million inhabitants in the provinces of Verona, Brescia, Mantua (Mantova) and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. History Early years Villafranca Air Base was a military airport during the First World War. It became open to civil traffic in the early 1910s with daily scheduled connections to Rome and charter flights to destinations in northern Europe. Towards late 1970s, under the first community project by the Province of Verona, Comune of Verona and the local Chamber of Commerce, Villafranca Airport constructed a passenger terminal, offices and handling facilities. The managing society, Aeroporto Valerio Catullo di Verona Villafranca S.P.A., was established in December 1978. Ownership is currently shared between provincial governments from Veneto (Villafranca di Verona and Sommacampagna), Lombardy (Province of Brescia), Trentino (second main shareholder) and Alto Adige/Südtirol. Expansion in the 1990s and 2000s In 1990, the passenger terminal was expanded in order to cope with the constantly growing air traffic. The aircraft apron and car-parking areas were enlarged; in addition, access to the airport was improved by a road link to Verona's new ring road (SS12) in preparation for the 1990 FIFA World Cup. In 1995, the airport reached a record of handling one million passengers per annum. In 1999, the airport became Italy's second-grade airport in the 'Special Classification of Charter Traffic' and ranked after Milan Malpensa Airport and Rome Fiumicino Airport. During the Bosnian War, the airport was used by NATO aircraft as a staging area. Passenger numbers continued to grow: 2 million per year in 2001 and 3 million per year in 2006. In response to the strong demand in patronage, the airport undertook a significant expansion programme on its services and facilities. In May 2006, a new arrivals terminal, Terminal 2, was opened by the Vice-Minister of Transport, Cesare De Piccoli, and Vice-President of Veneto Region, Luca Zaia. This additional terminal is situated immediately next to the original building, now known as Terminal 1. As a result of the expansion programme, the airport's capacity doubled. Hence Terminal 1 is used solely for departures and Terminal 2 for arrivals. 2010s Air traffic continued to grow during the 2010s, with 3,385,794 passengers recorded in 2011. After a European Union