Hévíz–Balaton Airport

Hévíz–Balaton Airport
Hévíz-Balaton Repülőtér
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Hévíz-Balaton Airport Kft.
Serves Hévíz and Lake Balaton, Hungary
Location Sármellék
Elevation AMSL 124 m / 408 ft
Coordinates 46°41′11″N 017°09′33″E / 46.68639°N 17.15917°E / 46.68639; 17.15917Coordinates: 46°41′11″N 017°09′33″E / 46.68639°N 17.15917°E / 46.68639; 17.15917
Website hevizairport.com
Map
SOB

Location within Hungary

Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
16/34 2,500 8,202 Concrete
Helipads
Number Length Surface
m ft
H1 3 × 45 10 × 150 Concrete
Source: Hungarian AIP at EUROCONTROL[1]

Hévíz–Balaton Airport (IATA: SOB, ICAO: LHSM), previously also known as Sármellék International Airport (Hungarian: Sármellék Nemzetközi Repülőtér), is an international airport in Hungary located west of Lake Balaton, 1 kilometre (0.6 mi) south-southwest[1] of the village of Sármellék, Zala County and Keszthely. It gains importance due to the proximity of Lake Balaton, Hungary's most important holiday resort and the thermal spas of Hévíz and Zalakaros. A government decision made in 2016 set the deadline for the construction of a rail ring around the Balaton to 2022. By 2017 there is no decision yet, whether a stop at the airport will be part of the Balaton Rail Ring.

History

A military airport was already located here in the 1940s. It was paved in the 1950s and functioned as a Hungarian military airport until 1960, and as a Soviet military airport between 1960 and the Autumn of 1990. The current runways were constructed in 1982.

Sármellék International Airport had operated as a public airport since 1991 and became the second international airport of the country on 15 May 2002 after Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport. The airport is owned by the local governments of Sármellék and Zalavár since August 2002, operated by an Irish-Hungarian investment group, Cape Clear Aviation Ltd., since 2004.

In December 2005 Ryanair announced three weekly scheduled flights from London–Stansted, the route has since been cut along with flights announced in October 2006 from Hahn.

Due to financial problems, the airport closed over the winter period 2008–09, but closed indefinitely on 10 October 2009. A new buyer was then sought for the facility.[2] It reopened, however, in April 2010. In the next two winters it was closed, but in the spring and summer months of 2011 and 2012 it reopened again. The flights started again on 14 April 2012.

In 2012 the airport has also got a new name, since April it is known as Hévíz–Balaton Airport.

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Czech Airlines Seasonal: Berlin-Schönefeld, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Prague
Freebird Airlines Seasonal charter: Antalya
Germania Seasonal: Dresden, Erfurt/Weimar, Leipzig/Halle
Lufthansa Seasonal: Frankfurt
UTair Aviation Seasonal: Moscow–Vnukovo

In addition to the shown scheduled services there are some more occasional charter services, especially during the German summer holiday season.

Statistics

Year Passengers[3] Change
2004 21 077 n/a
2005 25 932 +23%
2006 63 627 +145,34%
2007 105 697 +66,11%
2008 102 131 −3,37%
2009 15 075 −85,23%
2010 14 828 −1,63%
2011 18 191 +22,68%
2012 18 831 +3,51%
2013 25 015 +32,84%
2014 28 588 +14,28%
2015
15 748
 -38,45%

References

  1. 1 2 "EAD Basic". Ead.eurocontrol.int.
  2. ↑ Blazej, Jan (January–February 2010). "Balaton Airport Closure". Airports of the World (27): 14. ISSN 1747-4396. External link in |journal= (help)
  3. ↑ "Repülőterek forgalmi adatai (2004-2015)" (in Hungarian). KSH. Retrieved 2016-04-15.

Media related to Sármellék International Airport at Wikimedia Commons

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