Pulkovo Airport

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Pulkovo Airport (Russian Аэропорт Пулково / Aeroport Pulkovo; IATA: LED, ICAO: ULLI ) is located about 14 kilometers south from the center of Saint Petersburg and is named after the district Pulkovo ( Пулково ) named. The airport is around 11.1 million passengers in 2012, the third largest in Russia.

Location and Transport

The airport is on the Pulkowoer road, which extended over the Moskovsky Prospekt, running into the center of the city. In 2007, the St. Petersburg ring road KAD was connected to the Pulkowoer road, lies the entrance to the airport about one kilometer south of the. In order for a bypass of the city center is possible to get to the northern part of St. Petersburg.

In addition to buses and Marschrutki an express binds to the airport on the Metro ( subway) and central points in the city center. This can be overpriced and sometimes illegal taxi offers are bypassed.

The airport is geologically ( like the entire city of St. Petersburg) in the former seabed. The former coastline form the Pulkower heights, about 4 km south of the airport. On the Pulkovo hills and mostly seen well in the approach, the Pulkovo Observatory have (English: Pulkovo Space Observatory, Russian: Пулковская астрономическая обсерватория ), which is an observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

For several years arises in the immediate vicinity of the airport, particularly at the international terminal Pulkovo -2, a business park with several office buildings. In the wider area, many shopping and entertainment centers have settled. One of these centers is to say in reference to the airport terminals " Pulkovo III ".

The transport links to the new terminal is criticized 1 In the area of public transport, there is still only the bus line 39, which also previously snapped at the old Terminal I. The accessibility by car is difficult due to insufficient parking and often time-consuming.

History

The construction of the St. Petersburg (then Leningrad ) airport began in January 1931 Originally called the Schossejnaja Airport ( Шоссейная; German country road / highway ). . It was opened on a flight from Moscow, after two and a half hours flight time at 17.31 clock with passengers and cargo ( mail) ended on 24 June 1932 aboard in St. Petersburg.

In 1951 the airport to today's terminal Pulkovo -2 (international) was developed, which allowed the landing of larger machines.

The renaming in Pulkovo Airport in April 1973 at the inauguration of the second terminal (now Pulkovo -1, domestic flights ) completed. The terminal is connected by a spacious three-kilometer long access road from the highway to Moscow to the city center. It was already overloaded immediately after completion, so that the old planning to demolish the building in 1951 and to focus on the new facilities could not be performed.

In 2003, the 300th anniversary of the city 's Pulkovo 2 was expanded through a new extended foyer.

By 2006 the Pulkovo airport and the airline Pulkovo Airlines jointly operated by the company Pulkovo Aviation Enterprise. Under pressure from the city of St. Petersburg and the Russian government this link 27 October 2006, has been resolved. The airline subsequently merged with the state- owned airline Rossiya under their name. The seat of the Rossiya was this moved from Moscow to Pulkovo Airport. In the summer of 2006, the start and runway 10L/28R was expanded for the weather-independent ILS traffic. She is the first for the new Airbus A380 superjumbo jet suitable runway in Russia.

The airport should go to 50 percent possession of the city of St. Petersburg to original plans. In January 2007, but the then President Putin agreed to the request of the St. Petersburg Governor Matviyenko, left to the shares of the emerging airport AG the city completely. (: Pulkovo airport AG German ) announced on 1 March 2007 was approved by the airport authority, the official founding of the " OAO Aeroport Pulkovo ".

As part of an international tender, a new airport operator was sought from May 2008 to June 2009 by the city of St. Petersburg. In this case, the consortium Northern Capital Gateway ( Воздушные Ворота Северной Столицы ) ( NCG) prevailed. Since 29 April 2010 the NCG operates the airport in a public- private partnership with a contract period of 30 years. Here, in addition to taxes, a concession fee of 11.5 % p. a discharged on revenues to the City of Petersburg. At the NCG the Russian bank VTB Capital to 57.5 %, the German airport operator Fraport to 35.5% and the Greek Copelouzos Group are involved to 7%. The new operator expects investments of 1.4 billion euros by the year 2025. These are credit- financed inter alia by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

In September 2006, the German Hochtief Airport presented a long-term planning study, after which the airport is to be greatly expanded in 2025 for 320 million euros. According to this study should Pulkovo -1 modernized for the national air transport which will be expanded and extended to include a new international terminal 3, which Pulkovo -2 to replace on the other side of the airport. By dramatically reducing transfer times between domestic and international flights, the attractiveness, capacity and efficiency of the airport is to be improved, so that the passengers could be increased from 7.1 million to 17.3 million passengers in 2025. In the wake of the takeover by the new operator consortium, therefore, the Russian government called on the city of St. Petersburg to overwrite 150 hectares of adjacent land owned by the city of new airport company. The aim is the development prospects of Flughafenes be significantly improved.

For the new building in an architectural competition, a project of the British Grimshaw and Partners was selected in 2007. End of September 2010 started the construction of the new terminal and the ground-breaking ceremony took place on 24 November 2010 in the presence of Prime Minister Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. On 4 December 2013, the new Terminal 1 was finally opened.

After a transition period of four months, the old international terminal II was completely closed on 27 March 2014. The last two flights, which were dispatched from that building, were two machines of KLM and Air France with destination Amsterdam or Paris. However, the building is to be demolished not, but subject to a reserve. Even the old national Terminal I is closed with as of April 2014. However, it should be re-opened after a renovation and connected to the new Terminal 1. An exact date for this is not known.

Terminal building

Former terminals The two former terminals Pulkovo I and Pulkovo - II were closed within four months after the completion of the new Terminal 1. From Pulkovo -1 mainly domestic flights and flights within the CIS were conducted. Pulkovo -2 served mainly to international air traffic.

Current terminal On 4 December 2013, the new, modern Terminal 1 was opened. It borders Pulkovo I and handles the national and international transport. Since 28 March 2014, all flights are processed only through the new terminal. It is planned to renovate the old terminal Pulkovo -I and connected to the new building by construction of a passage.

Capacity

Air traffic alone took in the 1990s by 50 percent to over 4 million passengers in 2000. In 2005 there were already 4.7 million passengers and 2008 Pulkovo was 7.1 million passengers on the Moscow airports Sheremetyevo and Domodedovo of third largest airport in the Russian Federation. In 2009, due displaced by the economic crisis and the decline in passenger numbers to 6.7 million of the Pulkovo airport from Moscow Vnukovo Airport from 3rd place. In 2010, however, continued to grow strongly at 8.44 million passengers could be recorded. With the opening of Terminal 1 in December 2013, the capacity of the airport rose to 17 million passengers per year.

The two former terminals, Pulkovo I and II possessed 41 check- in counters, 17 gates, 4 passenger boarding bridges, baggage conveyors 8. The new Terminal 1 is equipped with 88 check- in counters and baggage carousels seven. In addition, it has 14 passenger boarding bridges. As capacity for the cargo terminal will be a 30,000 t / specified in a storage area of ​​6,000 m².

Airlines and destinations

From German-speaking countries of the airport is served nonstop: Lufthansa flies three times daily from Frankfurt, Munich and from twice daily from Dusseldorf, Swiss flies daily from Zurich, Austrian Airlines from Vienna. Air Berlin flies twice daily from Berlin- Tegel and several times a week from Dusseldorf. Rossiya operates daily flights to Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg and Berlin- Schönefeld (August 2011).