Budaörs Airport
| Budaörs Airport Budaörsi Repülőtér | |||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Private | ||||||||||||||
| Owner/Operator | Hungarian Aviation Association | ||||||||||||||
| Serves | Budapest, Hungary | ||||||||||||||
| Location | 7 km (4.3 mi) south-west of centre of Budapest | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 126 m / 413 ft | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 47°27′3″N 18°58′50″E / 47.45083°N 18.98056°ECoordinates: 47°27′3″N 18°58′50″E / 47.45083°N 18.98056°E | ||||||||||||||
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| Map | |||||||||||||||
  LHBS  LHBS Location in Hungary | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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Budaörs Airport (Hungarian: Budaörsi Repülőtér), (ICAO: LHBS) is an airport located to the south-west of Budapest, Hungary. Now serving general aviation, it was once Hungary's only international airport.
History
Until the opening of Budaörs, Budapest's main airport was Mátyásföld Airfield (Hungarian: Mátyásföld Repülőtér), 12 km (7.5 mi) east of Budapest. This was a very small airfield, and a replacement was established at Budaörs,[1] at the south-western limit of Budapest's city boundary. Half of the airfield is within the city boundary, and half in Budaörs, in Pest County.
Planning for the airport started in 1935, and in 1936 design competitions for the terminal and main hangar were held. Construction started the same year, and the terminal was completed in 232 days, being opened on the 20th June 1937. The main architect of the terminal was Virgil Bierbauer (Hungarian: Virgil Borbiró),[2] and it is considered one of his finest works. Its grand main hall was particularly noteworthy.[3] The building still exists, but is not accesible to the public.
The main hangar was also completed in 1937. With dimensions of 141 m (463 ft) by 41 m (135 ft) it was the largest hangar in Europe at the time.[2] It is still in use today. The terminal and the main hangar are protected historical monuments.[3]
The airfield was completed in the summer of 1937, immediately becoming Hungary's main airport, and the only one where international flights were permitted.
Airlines and Routes
The services operated in the summer of 1938 are shown here:[4]
| Company | Route | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Air France | Belgrade — Bucharest | |
| Air France | Vienna — Prague — Strasbourg — Paris | |
| Ala Littoria | Vienna — Venice — Rome | |
| Czech Airlines | Bratislava | |
| Deutsche Luft Hansa | Belgrade — Athens — Rhodes — Damascus — Baghdad — Tehran | |
| Deutsche Luft Hansa | Belgrade — Sofia — Salonica — Athens | |
| Deutsche Luft Hansa | Berlin | |
| Deutsche Luft Hansa | Bucharest | |
| Deutsche Luft Hansa | Vienna — Berlin | |
| KLM | Athens — Batavia | |
| KLM | Leipzig — Amsterdam | |
| KLM | Vienna — Prague — Rotterdam — London | |
| MALERT | Arad — Bucharest | In pool |
| MALERT | Prague | |
| MALERT | Vienna — Saltsburg — Munich — Zurich | |
| MALERT | Warsaw |
A service from Heston via Frankfurt was started by British Airways Ltd in April 1939, using Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra aircraft.[5]
By 1950, MALERT had been replaced by MASOVLET, 51% owned by the USSR, which operated services to Bratislava, Prague, Bucharest and Venice. Other airlines operating into Budaörs were Aeroflot, Czech Airlines, KLM, JAT Jugoslovenski Aerotransport, LOT Polish Airlines, and Transadriatica.[6]
End of airline service
The need for the replacement of Budaörs by a larger airport had been clear since 1939. Hills surrounding Budaörs Airport, a lack of room for expansion, and the need for longer, hard runways led the development of what would become Budapest Ferihegy International Airport. Ferihegy was ready in 1943, but bombing during World War 2 caused it extensive damage, so, as Budaörs had survived the war relatively unscathed,[7] it continued in use until repairs at Ferihegy were completed. Ferihegy was reopened on 7 May 1950,[1] and a Lisunov Li-2 flew in from Budaörs to mark the occasion.[8]
All services transferred from Budaörs shortly afterwards, and recreational flying and parachuting activities which had gone on at Ferihegy moved to Budaörs.
Current operations
Budaörs is now an active general aviation airport, with many light aircraft and gliders based there. Pleasure flights and flight training businesses are based there,[9] and a notable resident is the Goldtimer Foundation, which restores and flies vintage aircraft including a Lisunov Li-2 and a Polikarpov Po-2.
References
- 1 2 Laszlo, Viktor (June 2002). "Ferihegy International Airport". Airways. 9 (4).
- 1 2 "Budaors Airport". Industrial Heritage Hungary. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- 1 2 "Budaörs airport and its interior decoration". Eye Resonator at the Power Plant. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ↑ Grey, C.G.; Bridgman, Leonard (1938). Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1938 (1972 reprint by David & Charles (Publishers) ed.). Sampson Low Marston & Company. ISBN 0 7153 5734 4.
- ↑ "Budaörs Airport Gallery". Budaörs Airport. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ↑ Bridgman, Leonard (1950). Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1949-50. Sampson Low Marston & Company.
- ↑ Laszlo, Viktor (August 2002). "Malev". Airliner World.
- ↑ "Budaörs Airport". Rolling in Budapest. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ↑ "Budaörs Airport LHBS Sightseeing Flight Training". Budaörs Airport. Retrieved 2017-04-08.