Romanians take to the skies

"The only people who do not grumble about the lack of trains and motorways in Romania are pilots," remarks Gândul. Air travel is taking off in the 238,000 km2 country, which has only 3 motorways and no high-speed train lines. In 2008, "9.1 million people passed through the nation's 17 airports, generating more than 600 million euros in revenue," reports the Bucharest daily. "Better road and rail infrastructure would have resulted in a less significant development of the air sector," says Catlin Radu, the Ministry of Transport's Director of Civil Aviation, who is clearly enthusiastic about the trend. "The six or seven years we will need to complete the construction of ground infrastructure represent a real opportunity for airports."