Car breaches airport fence – comes to a stop just a few meters from the runway

Unusual incident in Palma: Car ends only a few meters from the runway

It's one of those moments when you ask yourself: How could this happen? Just after five o'clock in the morning on a cool, windy September day, a car on Camí Vell de Llucmajor apparently lost control in a sharp bend and breached the metal fence that separates the airport grounds from the road.

What the police report

According to local officers, the driver is a 43-year-old Brazilian. The car shot several dozen meters over the secured area before stopping after about 49 meters — dangerously close to the runways. Fortunately, no flight movements were disrupted by the incident, but the situation could easily have turned out differently.

The occupants left the vehicle on foot and disappeared from the scene, police sources report. Neither the airport management nor the police had noticed the incident immediately. It was only hours later that the abandoned vehicle near the runway was discovered, raising questions about response times and procedures for monitoring the site.

Causes and consequences

Initial investigations point to excessive speed in the 90-degree bend as a possible cause. No one was seriously injured — that much is certain for now. Still, security officers describe it as a 'significant risk,' because a car so close to the runway is anything but harmless.

The authorities officially treat the incident as a routine traffic accident. Whether further measures will follow, such as improvements to the fence, additional checks, or stricter controls of the road layout in this section, remains open. Residents who started early for work later reported agitated emergency vehicles and police roadblocks in the Llucmajor area.

A few questions remain

Why did the occupants leave the scene instead of calling for help? How could a vehicle reach so close to the runway without being noticed immediately? These are questions that still need clarification. For residents, the feeling remains: lucky, but narrowly escaped the worst.

The investigations are ongoing. Police have identified and questioned the alleged driver; further details will follow as the file is compiled. I will stay with it and report if there are new developments – because scenes like this disrupt our peace on the island a bit.