Riga International Airport
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| Riga International Airport Rīgas Starptautiskā Lidosta |
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| IATA: RIX – ICAO: EVRA | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Owner | Republic of Latvia (Joint stock company) |
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| Location | Riga, Latvia | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 34 ft / 10 m | ||
| Coordinates | 56°55′25″N 023°58′16″E / 56.92361°N 23.97111°ECoordinates: 56°55′25″N 023°58′16″E / 56.92361°N 23.97111°E | ||
| Website | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| m | ft | ||
| 18/36 | 3,200 | 10,500 | Asphalt |
| Statistics (2008) | |||
| Number of Passengers | 3,690,549 | ||
| Source (excluding statistics): DAFIF[1][2] | |||
Riga International Airport (IATA: RIX, ICAO: EVRA) was built in 1973 as an alternative to Spilve, which had become outdated. It is 13km southwest of Riga, the capital of Latvia. It is the largest airport in the Baltic states and is directly connected to over 60 destinations in 30 countries. Renovation and modernization of the airport was completed in 2001, coinciding with the 800th anniversary of the founding of the city. The airport is a state-owned joint-stock company, with the owner of all shares being the Latvian government. The holder of the state capital share is Latvia's Ministry of Transport. Riga International Airport is a hub for airBaltic, SmartLynx Airlines, RAF-Avia, Vip Avia and Inversija airlines.
In 2006, the new north terminal extension was opened. The airport has three terminals: A & C for non-Schengen, and B for Schengen departures. Arrivals 1, in terminal A, handles the Schengen arrivals, while Arrivals 2, in terminal C, handles the non-Schengen arrivals. [3] Also, a maintenance, repair and overhaul facility was opened in the autumn of 2006, to be run as a joint venture between two local companies - Concors and SR-Technik.
The Latvian Government also plans to build another terminal capable of handling 20 million passengers a year. The first part of this project has begun in 2008. The airport also plans to build new hotels, a business park, a second pier, new parking, a second runway, a new control tower, a new high-speed tram link or railway to the city centre, and a new check-in hall, all by 2011. The airport is currently soliciting bids for airport expansion that encompasses, as the first stage, a construction of a new (fourth) terminal with 23 gates facing north, and in the second stage, seemlessly joining the current airport terminals with the new terminal in a unified architectural entity. [4]
Riga International Airport is one of three notable airports in Latvia. The other two are the Liepāja International Airport and the Ventspils Airport. Riga International Airport's biggest air carrier is airBaltic.
In 2008, the airport served 3,690,549 passengers, a 17% increase over 2007.
The magazine GatewayRiga is available for visitors and passengers travelling through Riga airport. It has information on new airlines serving Riga, new destinations and routes, and other information about the airport itself and surrounding facilities. It is published three times per year by SIA Check-In Media.
Contents |
[edit] Airlines and destinations
[edit] Scheduled airlines
The following airlines have scheduled services to Riga International Airport as of July 2009:
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Aeroflot | Moscow-Sheremetyevo |
| airBaltic | Ålesund, Almaty, Amsterdam, Athens, Baku, Barcelona, Bergen, Berlin-Tegel, Billund, Brussels, Chisinau, Copenhagen, Dubai, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Dushanbe, Frankfurt [begins 17 September], Geneva, Gothenburg-Landvetter, Hamburg, Hannover, Helsinki, Hurghada [winter season], Istanbul-Atatürk, Kaliningrad, Kaunas, Kiev-Boryspil, Kuopio, Linköping, London-Gatwick, Milan-Malpensa, Minsk, Moscow-Sheremetyevo, Munich, Nice, Odessa, Oslo-Gardermoen, Oulu, Palanga, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Pskov [begins 1 September], Rome-Fiumicino, Sharm el-Sheikh [seasonal], Simferopol, Stavanger, Stockholm-Arlanda, St Petersburg, Tallinn, Tartu, Tampere, Tashkent, Tbilisi, Tel Aviv, Tromsö, Turku, Venice-Marco Polo, Vilnius, Vienna, Warsaw [begins 17 September], Yerevan, Zürich |
| Czech Airlines | Prague |
| Finnair | Helsinki |
| LOT Polish Airlines | Warsaw |
| Lufthansa | Frankfurt |
| Norwegian Air Shuttle | Oslo-Gardermoen, Trondheim |
| Ryanair | Bremen, Bristol, Brussels-Charleroi, Dublin, East Midlands, Frankfurt-Hahn, Glasgow-Prestwick, Liverpool, London-Stansted, Milan-Bergamo, Stockholm-Skavsta, Tampere, Weeze |
| Turkish Airlines | Istanbul-Atatürk |
| Uzbekistan Airways | New York-JFK, Tashkent |
| Windjet | Forli [ends 21 October][5] |
[edit] Charter airlines
In addition, the following airlines also have charter operations as of July 2009:
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| airBaltic | Antalya, Heraklion, Hurghada, Rijeka - summer season |
| SmartLynx Airlines | Antalya, Athens, Burgas, Heraklion, Luxembourg, Monastir, Santa Cruz de Tenerife - summer season; Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh - winter season |
| Bulgaria Air | Varna |
[edit] Cargo airlines
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Avion Express | |
| Inversija | |
| RAF-Avia | |
| UPS | |
| DHL Express | |
| TNT NV |
[edit] Baltic's busiest airports by passenger traffic
| Rank | City | Airport | Passengers (2008) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Riga | Riga International Airport | 3 691 000 |
| 2. | Vilnius | Vilnius International Airport | 2 048 000 |
| 3. | Tallinn | Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport | 1 811 536 |
| 4. | Kaunas | Kaunas International Airport | 410 000 |
| 5. | Palanga | Palanga International Airport | 101 586 |
[edit] Ground transports
- Bus
- Bus route #22, operated by Rīgas Satiksme, run between Riga city centre and the airport. Buses depart every 10 - 15 minutes from 5:45 a.m. till 23:50 p.m.. The journey time is about 40 min. The fare is 0.50 LVL or 1.20 LVL, if you have large luggage. The airport unloading point is in front of the second terminal. To get on the bus at the airport, look for the bus stop located across the street from the terminal, behind the car park.
- airBaltic in cooperation with Reval Hotel Latvia offers a shuttle bus service – Airport Express. The bus operates between the Riga airport and the Reval Hotel Latvia, (in the city centre,) every day from 5:30AM till 12:45AM (midnight). Buses are scheduled every 30 minutes. Tickets may be purchased from the bus driver or at the airBaltic, Berga Bazars (Elizabetes Iela 85a) or Reval Hotel Latvija (Elizabetes Iela 55) ticket offices. Ticket price: 3 LVL one-way. Cash (Latvian lats only) or payment cards are accepted.
- There are international bus connections from the airport to cities in Estonia and Lithuania. Additional information on bus routes and schedules may be found at the airport information centre.
- The traffic in between the resort city Jūrmala and Riga International airport is supported by the yellow buses called Jūrmala Shuttle Buses that depart from Konkordijas street in Jūrmala. The departure and disembarkation in the airport area is located by the main building, arrival terminal E.The bus schedule from the airport starts with the first one leaving at 10.00 and it doesn’t stop till midnight, but from Jūrmala first one leaves at 9.00 and last one at 23.00. The bus ride takes up to 55 minutes. The price for the ticket is 1 LVL to 3 LVL. For more information visit Jūrmala bus[6]
- Parking
- "Park&Fly" Riga Airport. Open 24 hours a day and located one minute from the Terminal at Riga International Airport, offers you the best possible service and cheap parking Riga airport. When you park your car with Park&Fly, you will drive free of charge directly to the airport in one of shuttlebuses with quick and courteous service. When you return, you simply need to call us (+371 2009 3232 or 6745 6724) as soon as you have collected your baggage and the ParkandFly Service will pick you up right away at the airport meeting point and take you to your car. Rates for Park&Fly at Riga Airport includes daily parking fee, luggage service and the delivering free of charge with Park&Fly Shuttle to Terminal and back to Parking. 2,50 LVL (EUR 3,60) per day
- The airport has 3 car parks, with ~1500 parking spaces.
- Parking P1 short-term car park is located right opposite the terminal building costs form LVL 1 to 2 for hour.
- Parking P2 long-term car park is located 400 meters away from the terminal close to the highway costs LVL 6 per day.
- Parking P3 short/long-term car park is located opposite Aviation Museum - driving to the airport turn right before the terminal. There are kept the car rental cars. Costs LVL 1 to 6 per hour and LVL 6 per day.
- Taxi
- All taxi companies may operate in Riga Airport. Journey by taxi is about 15 minutes. Getting to the city centre will cost you about 8 LVL, but it may vary in some taxis. Ask for the fare amount before traveling to avoid problems.
- Motorway
- The airport and European route E22 are connected by highway P133.
[edit] Technical information
- Located 255°, 5.4 NM from Riga. Elevation is 34 meters above sea level.
- Lighting
- Approach lights : Length 900 meters, intensity LIH.
- Threshold lights : Green
- Runway edge limits : Length is 3200 meters, spacing 60 meters, colour is yellow and intensity - LIH.
- Runway end lights : Red
- Time zone is +2 (subject of daylight saving time in summer). Airport is open 24 hours a day. Terminal space is 33 000 m2. Available fuel are JET A-1, AVGAS 100LL. Tower frequency is 118.1, ATIS frequency is 121.2 . Runway's length is 3200 meters and it's 45 meters wide.
[edit] Upcoming
In March 2008, Riga Airport started a runway extension and lighting system reconstruction project. The main runway will be extended 650 meters for a total length of 3200 meters. Starting 13 March, the approach lights will be abbreviated to 400 meters from the runway's end. However, this will not affect the security of landing.
Work on the extension of the runway was completed by October 30, 2008. With the completion of this project, the airport has the capacity to serve international flights and is able to accommodate big aircraft including Airbus A340, Boeing 747's, 757's, 767's and 777's.
In September 2007, Riga Airport announced the construction of a new taxiway, Delta, with work on another taxiway, Alpha finished shortly. There are already finished roads to the new course antenna.
[edit] See also
- List of airports in Latvia
- Transportation in Latvia
- Rīgas Satiksme (Riga Public Transport)
[edit] References
- ^ Airport information for EVRA at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.. Source: DAFIF.
- ^ Airport information for RIX at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective Oct. 2006).
- ^ Riga Airport Plan
- ^ Riga Airport Expansion Construction Bid Solicitation
- ^ Windjet timetables
- ^ http://www.riga-airport.com/?id=7591
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Category:Riga International Airport |
