Colombia, and the preferred option for domestic flights out of Medellin. In January 2006, an Airbus A380 landed at the airport to conduct technical tests of the engines. This was the first time a plane of that type landed on Colombian soil, and also the first time it happened in South America. In 2016, the airport handled 7,376,160 passengers, and 6,892,104 in 2017. In August 2019, a new highway opened, which cut the traveling time from the airport to Medellín from 45 to just 20 minutes. The route includes a tunnel called "Tunel de Oriente". The total cost of the project was 1.1 billion pesos. Renovation and expansion José María Córdova Airport underwent an expansion in 2017 that expanded the domestic terminal from to and added five new gates to it, along with three new gates for the international terminal. The expansion increased the passenger handling capacity to 11 million annually. Other improvements included more food and shopping options, more digital displays with flight information, more car rental options, and the addition of a duty-free shop. The total cost of the works was 350 billion pesos. The cargo terminal expansion was completed in February 2020 at a cost of around $110 million pesos. The terminal went from to . Airlines and destinations Passenger The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at the airport. Cargo Statistics Accidents and incidents On May 19, 1993, SAM Colombia Flight 501 crashed in to Mt. Paramo Frontino while making an approach to this airport. On December 21, 1996, an Antonov An-32B aircraft (registration HK-4008X) operated by SELVA Colombia crashed while on final approach to runway 36. The aircraft had taken off from Bogota for its usual cargo flight to José María Córdova Airport with 6 tons of cargo. During the approach phase, the plane veered three miles to the left of the glide slope, then turned sharply right, finally crashing more than five miles from the south end of the airport. The crash killed all four occupants of the aircraft. On December 22, 1998, an Antonov An-32B aircraft (registration HK-3930X) crashed while approaching the runway. The aircraft had taken off from Bogota for a cargo flight to the airport. The accident occurred at dawn and weather conditions were very bad due to the dense fog that was present in the area. The accident killed all five occupants of the aircraft. A similar incident