Ovda Airport

Ovda Airport
Ovda Airport
נמל התעופה עובדה
Ovda Airport.jpg
IATA: VDAICAO: LLOV
VDA is located in Israel
{{{alt}}}
VDA
Location of airport in Israel
Summary
Airport type Public/Military
Operator IAA
Serves Eilat, Israel
Location north of Eilat, Israel
Elevation AMSL 1,492 ft / 445 m
Coordinates 29°56′25″N 34°56′9″E / 29.94028°N 34.93583°E / 29.94028; 34.93583
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
2R/20L 9,843 3,000 Asphalt
2L/20R 8,530 2,600 Asphalt
Statistics (2010)
Passengers 117,166
Source: Official Airport Website [1]

Ovda Airport (Hebrew: נמל התעופה עובדה‎, Nemal HaTe'ufa Uvda, Arabic: اوفـدا‎ مطار‎) (IATA: VDAICAO: LLOV), is a military and civilian airport in Israel, and the country's second international airport, located in the south of the country about 60 km (37 mi) north of the city of Eilat. Ovda was originally built as a military airport in 1980 following Israel's withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula as part of the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty because the Israeli Air Force needed alternative airfields to its Sinai bases. Nowadays, the airport also serves as the destination for many commercial flights to Eilat, especially for large planes which cannot use the shorter runway at Eilat Airport, although it is still used by the air force.[1] The airport is expected to cease civilian flights once Eilat's new international airport in Timna opens.[2]

Contents

History

Early history

Ovda Airport started out as an airbase for the Israeli Air Force, constructed by the United States as a replacement for Etzion Air Force Base. It opened in 1981. The Israeli Airports Authority began operations from Ovda Air Force Base in 1982, after the signing of the peace treaty with Egypt.[3] Previously all charter flights from Europe had landed at Etzion, however this was one of three airports in the Sinai that were handed over to Egypt as part of the Camp David Accords.[3] A civilian terminal was built at the airport which handled direct charter flights from Europe.[3]

Recent history

In 1988 a decision was made that international flights bringing tourists to Eilat would land at Ovda, instead of at Eilat.[3] This allowed the operation of large, wide-body aircraft, such as the Boeing 747, which cannot operate from Eilat Airport.[3] Since then, most international flights land at Ovda instead of Eilat. The runway at Ovda also allows long range flights to take off for any European destination without the need to refuel.[3]

Today, the airport sees regular scheduled domestic services operated by Israir, Arkia Israel Airlines, and El Al Israel Airlines as well as regular charter services from across Europe. In 2005, the airport had 746 international aircraft movements and 82,479 international passenger movements.[4]

On January 1, 2009, the airport was closed to landing traffic during nighttime until further notice by the Ministry of Transport, due to the deteriorating condition of its runway. As such, there is currently no alternative landing strip in Israel during night time to the Ben Gurion International Airport for large aircraft, that will be forced to fly to Cyprus in case the Ben Gurion runways cannot accept the landing.[1]

Airlines and destinations

Ovda Airport is served by seven international carriers and three domestic airlines, serving few destinations in Europe and Israel. The airport is also used as a substitute for the inner Eilat airport in different situations.

Airlines Destinations
Aeroflot Moscow-Sheremetyevo
Arkefly Amsterdam
Arkia Israel Airlines Haifa, Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion, Tel Aviv-Sde Dov
Seasonal Charter: Kiev-Boryspil, Paris-Charles de Gaulle
Corendon Dutch Airlines Seasonal Charter: Amsterdam
El Al Seasonal: Paris-Charles de Gaulle
Finnair Seasonal Charter: Helsinki
Israir Haifa, Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion, Tel Aviv-Sde Dov
Primera Air Seasonal Charter: Helsinki
Rossiya Seasonal Charter: Saint Petersburg
VIM Airlines Seasonal Charter: Moscow-Domodedovo

See also

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ovda International Airport — Infobox Airport name = Ovda International Airport nativename = nativename a = נמל התעופה עובדה nativename r = image width = caption = IATA = VDA ICAO = LLOV type = Public/Military owner = operator = IAA city served = location = Eilat elevation f …   Wikipedia

  • Ovda — or Uvda may refer to: Ovda (Israel) Operation Uvda Ovda Israeli Air Force Base Ovda International Airport Ovda Regio on Venus This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an …   Wikipedia

  • Atarot Airport — Jerusalem International Airport (CLOSED) שדה התעופה ירושלים IATA: JRS – ICAO: LLJR, OJJR Summary Airport type Military/Public Operator …   Wikipedia

  • Sde Dov Airport — שדה דב مطار سدي دوف Aircraft on final approach at Sde Dov IATA: SDV – ICAO: LLSD …   Wikipedia

  • Ben Gurion International Airport — נמל התעופה בן גוריון IATA: TLV – ICAO: LLBG …   Wikipedia

  • Aeropuerto Internacional de Ovda — נמל התעופה עובדה IATA: VDA   OACI: LLOV Sumario Tipo Publico/Militar …   Wikipedia Español

  • Eilat Airport — Infobox Airport name = Eilat Airport (J. Hozman Airport) nativename = nativename a = נמל התעופה אילת nativename r = image width = caption = Logo of Israel Airports Authority IATA = ETH ICAO = LLET type = Public owner = operator = Israel Airports… …   Wikipedia

  • Ben Ya'akov Airport — IATA: RPN – ICAO: LLIB …   Wikipedia

  • Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport — Aéroport Paris Charles de Gaulle Roissy Airport …   Wikipedia

  • Charles de Gaulle International Airport — Infobox Airport name = Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport nativename = Aéroport Paris Charles de Gaulle nativename a = nativename r = Roissy Airport image width = caption = IATA = CDG ICAO = LFPG type = Public owner = operator = Aéroports de Paris… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”