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By Jason Moore THE Palma airport authorities estimate that in the next four years the airport will be handling in excess of 28 million passengers. This is an enormous number and clearly underlines the fact that the local tourist industry is going to continue to grow....or does it? Palma airport is increasingly being used as a hub, in layman´s terms a refuelling or transit stop for passengers who are going elsewhere. Now, while this may be good for Palma airport and the airport authority, it is not great news for the island because our airport is just a staging point. Competing resorts such as the Canary Islands are benefitting from the airport becoming a hub. Now despite the obvious benefit for the airport, perhaps it might be an idea if the local authorities looking into this issue because there is the small problem of pollution. As a result of the hub situation, the airport figures are no longer a good barometer into the state of the holiday industry. These days there are hub passengers and those who board a cruise ship in Palma and fly back from the airport as soon as they dock again. I was glad to see that the local authorities will soon be playing a role in the management of the airport. Then perhaps they could establish who is flying in and who is just flying out.