Kuopio Airport

"KUO" redirects here. For the Chinese psychologist, see Zing-Yang Kuo.
Kuopio Airport
Kuopion lentoasema
IATA: KUO – ICAO: EFKU
Summary
Airport type Public / Military
Operator Finavia
Serves Kuopio, Finland
Location Siilinjärvi, Finland
Elevation AMSL 323 ft / 98 m
Coordinates 63°00′31″N 027°47′40″E / 63.00861°N 27.79444°ECoordinates: 63°00′31″N 027°47′40″E / 63.00861°N 27.79444°E
Map
KUO

Location within Finland

Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
15/33 2,800 9,186 Asphalt
Statistics (2010)
Passengers 253,612
Landings 10,941
Source: AIP Finland[1]
Statistics from Finavia[2]
The new Air Traffic Control tower

Kuopio Airport (IATA: KUO, ICAO: EFKU) is an airport in Siilinjärvi, Finland, about 14 kilometres (9 mi) north of Kuopio city centre. It is the seventh busiest airport in Finland, as measured by the number of passengers (ca. 254,000 in 2010).[2]

History

Kuopio Airport was completed in November 1939 and flight operations started in May 1940. It was used by the Luftwaffe during World War II (1942–43). During the Continuation War the runways were made from plywood. The first terminal building was opened in 1949 before a new one replaced it in 1971. In 2004, Kuopio Airport was chosen as the Airport of the Year in Finland.[3] As of 2006, Kuopio Airport was one of only five profitable airports in Finland,[4] thanks to shared use of the runways by the Karelian Air Command of the Finnish Air Force and civilian airlines. Kuopio had its first international scheduled route when AirBaltic operated direct flights to Riga in 2008–2011.

Lake terminal

A unique airport Lake terminal was completed in March 2008. The terminal is situated some 200 metres (660 ft) from the airport tower. It connects the airport to Lake Saimaa region.

Lake Saimaa offers a waterway connection to the cities of the Finnish Lakeland: Imatra, Joensuu, Kuopio, Lappeenranta, Mikkeli, Savonlinna and Varkaus. Vuoksi River flows from Saimaa to Lake Ladoga (Russia). Saimaa Canal connects Saimaa with the Gulf of Finland.

Airlines and destinations

Airlines Destinations
Finnair Helsinki
Finnair
operated by Flybe Nordic		 Helsinki
Primera Air Seasonal: Eilat[5]
Thomas Cook Airlines Seasonal charter: Gran Canaria

Accidents and incidents

Finnish Air Force

Kuopio Airport is also home of the Finnish Air Force's Karelian Air Command and the Fighter Squadron 31 (HävLLv 31).

Statistics

Annual passenger statistics for Kuopio Airport [7]
Year Domestic passengers International passengers Total passengers Change
2005 274,954 32,785 307,739 +6.5% Increase
2006 289,231 42,971 332,202 +7.9% Increase
2007 270,430 33,774 304,204 −8.4% Decrease
2008 252,616 37,601 290,247 −4.6% Decrease
2009 220,018 30,546 250,564 −13.7% Decrease
2010 207,067 46,545 253,612 +1.2% Increase
2011 244,472 39,933 284,405 +12.1% Increase

See also

References

  1. ↑ "EFKU Kuopio" (PDF). AIP Suomi / Finland. Finavia. 30 June 2011. pp. EFKU AD 2.1, 1–14. Retrieved 17 July 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Finavia's Air Traffic Statistics 2010" (PDF). Vantaa: Finavia. pp. 7, 9. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
  3. ↑ "Kuopio is Airport of the Year for 2004". Vantaa: Civil Aviation Administration. 8 December 2004. Retrieved 17 July 2011.
  4. ↑ "Lentoasemista vain neljännes kannattavia". YLE Uutiset (in Finnish). Yleisradio Oy. 23 September 2007. Retrieved 23 September 2007.
  5. ↑ http://airlineroute.net/2014/12/01/pf-ovd-w14/
  6. ↑ "Aircraft accident Douglas C-47A-1-DK DO-10 Kuopio Airport (KUO)". Aviation Safety Network. 16 February 2010. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  7. ↑ "Traffic statistics – Passengers". Finavia. Retrieved 16 July 2011.

External links

Media related to Kuopio Airport at Wikimedia Commons