Šiauliai International Airport

Infobox Airport
name = Siauliai International
nativename =
nativename-a =
nativename-r =


image-width =
caption =
IATA =
ICAO = EYSA
type = Public/military
owner =
operator =
city-served =
location = Siauliai
elevation-f = 443
elevation-m = 135
coordinates = Coord|55|53|36|N|023|23|42|E|type:airport|display=inline,title
website =
metric-elev =
metric-rwy =
r1-number = 14/32
r1-length-f = 11483
r1-length-m = 3500
r1-surface = Asphalt
stat-year =
stat1-header =
stat1-data =
stat2-header =
stat2-data =
footnotes =

Šiauliai International Airport (also given as Zokniai Airport, _lt. Zoknių oro uostas) airport codes|SQQ|EYSA is located 7 km southeast of Šiauliai city, in northern Lithuania. It covers the area of 471 hectares.

The airport was one of the largest military airports in the former Soviet Union. In 1955 it was only one of 6 Soviet bases capable of handling the new Myasishchev M-4 bomber. It was home to 53 APIB (53rd Fighter-Bomber Aviation Regiment) flying MiG-23 aircraft with the ML, MLD, and UB variants [cite book| title = MiG-23/27 Flogger: Soviet Swing-Wing Fighter/Strike Aircraft | last = Gordon | first = Yefim | publisher = Midland | date = 2005 | id = 185780211X ] and the MiG-27. It was home to 196 VTAP (196th Military Transport Aviation Regiment) flying Il-76 aircraft [cite web| title = 37 Vozdushnaya Armiya VGK | publisher = Brinkster.com | url = http://www8.brinkster.com/vad777/sssr-89-91/vvs/add.htm ] . It served 117 OAP (117th Independent Aviation Regiment) flying An-12PPS aircraft [cite web| title = 37 Vozdushnaya Armiya VGK | publisher = Brinkster.com | url = http://www8.brinkster.com/vad777/sssr-89-91/vvs/add.htm ] . The Tupolev Tu-126 was based here during the 1960s or 1970s.

Siauliai now appears to be the home of the NATO Baltic Air Policing forward deployment providing airspace security to the three new Baltic members of NATO.

External links

* [http://www.siauliai-airport.com/ Official website of Šiauliai International Airport]
*WAD|EYSA

References