- Heraklion International Airport
-
"HER" redirects here. For other uses, see HER (disambiguation).
Heraklion International Airport
"Nikos Kazantzakis"
Κρατικός Αερολιμένας Ηρακλείου
"Νίκος Καζαντζάκης"
View of Heraklion Airport IATA: HER – ICAO: LGIR Location of airport in Greece
HERSummary Airport type Public Owner Greek Government Serves Heraklion Location Heraklion Elevation AMSL 128 ft / 39 m Coordinates 35°20′09″N 25°10′25″E / 35.33583°N 25.17361°ECoordinates: 35°20′09″N 25°10′25″E / 35.33583°N 25.17361°E Website Runways Direction Length Surface m ft 09/27 2,680 8,793 Asphalt 13/31 1,574 5,164 Asphalt Statistics (2010) Passengers 
4,907,337Aircraft Movements 42,396Freight handled (tonnes) 1,755Sources: Runways[1] Statistics[2] Heraklion International Airport, "Nikos Kazantzakis" (IATA: HER, ICAO: LGIR) is the primary airport on the island of Crete, Greece and the country's second busiest airport after Athens International Airport. It is located about 5 km east of the main city center of Heraklion, near the municipality of Nea Alikarnassos. It is a shared civil/military facility and covers 21,000 square meters of surface.
The airport is named after Heraklion native Nikos Kazantzakis, a Greek writer and philosopher.
Contents
History[3]
The airport first opened in March 1939. This was then merely a piece of flat agricultural land. The first aeroplane (a Junkers Ju-52) carried the first passengers to the site. During the Second World War operations ceased, but in fall 1946 traffic re-assumed, introducing the DC-3 aircraft.
At first the airport only offered very basic service, with only primitive installations on the site, in the form of 3 tents, smoke for wind determination and storm lamps for runway lighting.
In 1947, the first (small) terminal was erected. Hellenic Airlines started commercial flights in 1948. At that time, a total of 4,000 people were served. The year 1953 saw the construction of a paved runway which was initially 1,850 meters long and oriented as 09/27. The next major event followed in 1954, when a four-engined DC-4 aircraft landed for the fist time at the airport. In that year the airport handled approximately 18.000 passengers. From 1957 onward, the new Olympic Airways used the airport, starting services with the DC-6 aircraft.
Celebrations for the opening of the airport in 1939
From 1968 until 1971 the runway was extended to 2,680 meters and a new terminal and other facilities were constructed, essentially making it a new airport. On March 18, 1971 the first charter flight from abroad (British Airways) operated at the airport. The new airport itself was officially inaugurated on May 5, 1972.
Further eventsYear Event 1973-1975 Construction of aircraft hangars and service roads 1988 Inauguration of new foreign departure and arrivals lounges (900 m2) 1992 Copletion of new foreign arrivals lounge 1994 Operation of new foreign departures lounge (2,000 m 2) 1996 Completion of airport extension by 11,700 m2 1997 Operation of new foreign departures lounge (5,000 m2) 2005 Completion of airport extension by 18,985 m2
Annual passenger throughput - 10 year history[2]Year Flights Passengers Passengers Change (%) 2001 39,290 5,046,726 -2.02002 36,664 4,791,729 -5.12003 39,523 4,833,507 
+0.92004 38,170 4,712,508 -2,52005 38,266 4,932,911 +4.72006 43,740 5,345,652 +8.42007 46,012 5,438,369 +1.72008 45,280 5,437,068 -0.022009 44,842 5,052,840 -7.12010 42,396 4,907,337 -2.9The effects of the economic crises can clearly be seen in the last 3 ears.
Area
Nikos Kazantzakis Airport is Crete's main and busiest airport, serving Heraklion (Ηράκλειο), Aghios Nikolaos (Άγιος Νικόλαος), Malia (Mάλλια), Hersonissos (Χερσόνησος), Stalida (Σταλίδα), Elounda (Ελούντα) and other resorts.
New Airport
During the summermonths the airport can become very congested. During this period it is not uncommon that passengers have to wait in queue for check-in outside the terminal.
Therefore, a new airport at Kastelli Pediados has been planned. The project is originally expected to be completed by 2015. The cost of this airport will be approximately 1 billion euros. When the new airport is up and running, the existing airport at Heraklion will cease operations.[4][5]
Passenger Information
It is often requested by airlines that passengers do not take any photographs or video of the runway. This is because of a Hellenic Air Force base which operates at the airport.
Airlines and destinations
Airlines Destinations Aegean Airlines Athens, Larnaca, Thessaloniki
Seasonal: Brussels [begins 25 March 2012], London-Heathrow, Milan-Malpensa, Munich [begins 25 March 2012], Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Rome-Fiumicino, Strasbourg, Tel Aviv-Ben GurionAeroflot Seasonal: Moscow-Sheremetyevo Air Berlin Seasonal: Basel/Mulhouse, Berlin-Tegel, Cologne/Bonn, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Erfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig/Halle, Münster/Osnabrück, Munich, Nuremberg, Paderborn/Lippstadt, Zürich Air Italy Polska Seasonal: Warsaw Air Méditerranée Seasonal: Bordeaux, Lyon, Nantes, Paris-Charles de Gaulle Air Moldova Seasonal Charter: Chiṣinǎu Air One Seasonal: Milan-Malpensa Air VIA Seasonal: Zweibrücken Alitalia Seasonal: Rome-Fiumicino Arkefly Seasonal Charter: Amsterdam Arkia Israel Airlines Seasonal: Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion Astra Airlines Seasonal: Thessaloniki Austrian Airlines
operated by Lauda AirSeasonal: Vienna Belle Air Seasonal: Tirana Blue Air Seasonal: Bucharest-Baneasa Condor Seasonal: Berlin-Schönefeld, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hanover, Leipzig/Halle, Munich, Stuttgart Corendon Airlines Seasonal: Amsterdam, Brussels Cyprus Airways Larnaca, Rhodes Czech Airlines Seasonal: Dublin EasyJet Seasonal: Berlin-Schönefeld, Bristol, London-Gatwick, London-Luton [begins 21 April 2012], Manchester, Rome-Fiumicino Edelweiss Air Seasonal Geneva, Zürich Enter Air Seasonal Bydgoszcz Europe Airpost Seasonal: Cork, Dublin, Metz-Nancy, Paris-Charles de Gaulle FlyLal ChartersPolska Seasonal: Warsaw Fly Hellas Seasonal: Belfast-International, Birmingham, Humberside, Izmir, London-Gatwick, Lyon, Manchester, Milan-Malpensa, Nantes, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Porto, Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion Germanwings Seasonal: Berlin-Schönefeld, Cologne/Bonn, Hanover, Stuttgart Hamburg Airways Seasonal: Hamburg Helvetic Airways Seasonal: Berne Holidays Czech Airlines Seasonal: Brno, Dublin, Prague Iberia operated by Air Nostrum Madrid Iberworld Barcelona, Madrid
Seasonal: ToulouseIsrair Airlines Seasonal Charter: Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion ItAli Airlines Pescara
Seasonal: BrindisiJet2.com Seasonal: East Midlands, Leeds/Bradford, Glasgow-International [begins 13 May 2012], Manchester
Seasonal Charter: Newcastle upon TyneJetairfly Brussels, Charleroi
Seasonal: OstendKavminvodyavia Seasonal: Mineralnye Vody Lauda Air Seasonal: Vienna LOT Charters Warsaw, Krakow
Seasonal: KatowiceLuxair Seasonal Luxembourg Malév Hungarian Airlines Seasonal: Budapest Monarch Seasonal Scheduled: Birmingham [begins 1 May 2012], London-Gatwick [begins 1 May 2012] Niki Seasonal: Graz, Linz, Salzburg, Vienna NordStar Moscow-Domodedovo
Seasonal: Norilsk [6]Norwegian Air Shuttle Copenhagen
Seasonal: Oslo-GardermoenNovair Seasonal: Stockholm-Arlanda Olympic Air Athens, Rhodes, Thessaloniki Rossiya Seasonal: St Petersburg Sky Express Athens, Ikaria, Kalamata, Kos, Mytilene, Rhodes, Samos, Sitia, Volos, Zakynthos Small Planet Airlines Seasonal: Tallinn, Vilnius Sky Wings Charter Seasonal Belfast-International, Birmingham Smart Wings Seasonal: Ostrava, Prague SmartLynx Airlines Charter Riga
Seasonal charter: TallinnSun d'Or
operated by El AlSeasonal: Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion S7 Airlines Seasonal: Moscow-Domodedovo Thomas Cook Airlines Belfast-International, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Midlands, Glasgow-International, London-Gatwick, Manchester
Seasonal: Newcastle upon TyneTAROM Seasonal: Bucharest-Henri Coanda Thomson Airways Seasonal Charter: Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Doncaster/Sheffield, East Midlands, Glasgow-International, London-Gatwick, London-Luton, London-Stansted, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne Transaero Airlines Seasonal: Moscow-Domodedovo, St Petersburg, Yekaterinburg[citation needed] Transavia Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Groningen, Maastricht
Seasonal: RotterdamTransavia France Lyon, Nantes
Seasonal: Paris-Orly, LilleTravel Service Seasonal: Prague, Bratislava, Košice, Brno Travel Service Hungary Seasonal: Budapest TUIfly Seasonal: Basel/Mulhouse, Berlin-Tegel, Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Nuremberg, Stuttgart, Zweibrücken Ural Airlines Seasonal: Yekaterinburg Vladivostok Air Charter: Vladivostok Vueling Seasonal: Barcelona Wizz Air Budapest
Seasonal: KatowiceXL Airways France Lyon
Seasonal: MarseilleXL Airways Germany Basel, Bremen, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Leipzig
Seasonal: WeezeReferences
- ^ "Air data". Hellenic Civilian Aviation Authority. www.hcaa-eleng.gr. http://www.hcaa-eleng.gr/herakdat.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-04.
- ^ a b "Statistical data of Iraklion airport "N. Kazantzakis" for the period 1994-2010". Hellenic Civilian Aviation Authority. www.hcaa.gr. http://www.hcaa.gr/up/files/stat_KAHK_2010_eng.xls. Retrieved 2011-11-11.
- ^ Heraklion Airport History
- ^ Article from oriste.com: "New airport Iraklio Crete in Kastelli Pediados"
- ^ Article from oriste.com: "Construction of Iraklio airport in Kastelli Pediados"
- ^ http://www.airpics.net/photo/VQ-BDO-Boeing-737-800-NordStar-Airlines/12809/L
External links
- Greek Airports: Heraklion International Airport, "N. Kazantzakis"
- Greek Airport Guide: Iraklio Airport, "N. Kazantzakis"
- Photos & Info about Heraklion airport
- Airport information for LGIR at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.
- LGIR current wind
- Heraklion airport history
Categories:- Heraklion (city)
- Airports in Greece
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
