It opened in 2009 and was supposed to be a major aviation hub It is now a ghost airport (Image: Bloomberg via Getty Images)

It might sound like a Spanish side you'd pick on a dodgy football video game, but Real Ciudad is actually one of the 21st century's most catastrophic infrastructure blunders.

Constructed at a staggering cost of over €1.1 billion, it launched in 2009 with grand promises of becoming a major aviation hub to ease congestion at Spain's other airports whilst luring budget airlines from across Europe.

Yet it barely limped through three years before closing entirely, earning the grim moniker of Spain's "ghost airport."

The scheme emerged during Spain's mid-2000s building frenzy, with sky-high aspirations.

Featuring one of Europe's longest runways at 4.1km and a t

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