Wrocław Airport
Copernicus Airport Wrocław Port Lotniczy Wrocław im. Mikołaja Kopernika | |||||||||||
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| File:Copernicus Airport Wrocław logo.png | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Wrocław Airport Company | ||||||||||
| Serves | Wrocław, Poland | ||||||||||
| Focus city for | |||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 123 m / 404 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 51°06′34″N 016°52′49″E / 51.10944°N 16.88028°E | ||||||||||
| Website | airport.wroclaw.pl | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  EPWR Location in Poland  EPWR EPWR (Poland) | |||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2017) | |||||||||||
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Copernicus Airport Wrocław (Template:Lang-pl (IATA: WRO, ICAO: EPWR) is an international commercial airport in Wrocław in southwestern Poland. The airport is located 10 km (6.2 mi) southwest of the city centre. It has one runway, one passenger terminal and one cargo terminal.
History
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The airport was built in 1938 as Flugplatz Breslau-Schöngarten Airport for German military purposes before World War II, when the city was still part of Germany.[2] It was the site of a military aviation school, the Luftkriegsschule Breslau-Schöngarten, later renamed Luftkriegsschule 5. Among the Luftwaffe units stationed here just before the war were the Sturzkampfgeschwader 77, Kampfgeschwader 76, and Kampfgeschwader 1 "Hindenburg".
It was operated briefly by Soviet forces following the war before being used for civilian purposes in 1945. Services were operated to Warsaw, Łódź, Poznań and Katowice. By 1992 destinations also included Kraków, Rzeszów, Gdańsk, Szczecin and Koszalin.
'Port Lotniczy Wrocław S. A.' was established as a company in January 1992 and Wrocław airport assets operated by the state owned Polish Airports authority were transferred to the company in January 1993. [citation needed]
The first international flights were inaugurated in January 1993, serving Frankfurt, Germany. Significant airport improvements have been completed in the late twentieth century. A new international departures terminal was opened in May 1997 followed by a new domestic terminal in November 1998. [citation needed] A cargo terminal, international arrivals hall, and installation of a new meteorological system were completed in 1999; new fire station and apron extensions in 2000. [citation needed]
New air traffic control tower and duty-free area in 2001.
On December 6, 2005 the airport was renamed after the famous astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (in Polish: Mikołaj Kopernik), who in Wrocław studied and received a scholarship, and in the years 1503-1538 was scholastic Wrocław Collegiate Holy Cross and St. Bartholomew on the Cathedral Island. The airport's new name is Copernicus Airport Wrocław (Port Lotniczy Wrocław im. Mikołaja Kopernika). Terminal extensions were officially opened on the same day, increasing the airport's capacity to 750,000 passengers per year. This capacity was quickly exceeded by several hundred thousand (in the first 9 months of 2007 the airport served 972,505 passengers) so the existing terminal space was expanded by 1,900 m2 (20,451 sq ft) to alleviate some of the congestion, but more importantly make the terminal facilities conform to the requirements of the Schengen Agreement, which was implemented at Poland's airports on 31 March 2008.
On 19 July 2006, the architectural firm JSK was chosen to design a significant airport expansion. This includes plans for a new passenger terminal (eventually, after several stages of expansion, the airport will be able to handle 7 million passengers yearly) and assorted taxiway, apron and navigation equipment improvements (ILS). Also, car parking will be expanded to 1,000 spaces. The first stage, increasing the passenger capacity to 3,5 million yearly, officially opened on February 29, 2012. However, the new terminal opened to passengers on Sunday March 11, 2012. in 2015 Ryanair announced that it has selected Copernicus Airport Wrocław (Port Lotniczy Wrocław im. Mikołaja Kopernika) for its aircraft maintenance base. The construction of the hangar to fit 2 C-type aircraft (Boeing 737) was finished in June 2017[3]. The airport has upgraded to ILS system from category I to category II in April 2016.
Awards
Wrocław Airport is among the elite of the best airports in Europe in 2016, 23rd among all European airports, and 3 among European regional airports.[4]
Facilities
The airport operates modern domestic, international and cargo terminals. The international terminal contains a duty free area in the international departures hall. The cargo terminal, located beside the fire station and air traffic control tower, west of the passenger terminals, has a storage area of 3,300 m2 (36,000 sq ft), a bonded warehouse, freezer and radioactive materials warehouse.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
Statistics
Following are the official airport annual traffic figures.[12]
| Year | Passengers | Cargo (tonnes)[13] | Movements |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 174 202 | 871 | 9 558 |
| 1999 | 191 502 | 628 | 10 333 |
| 2000 | 210 873 | 2 548 | 11 858 |
| 2001 | 237 705 | 1 172 | 7 430 |
| 2002 | 236 151 | 1 571 | 6 594 |
| 2003 | 284 334 | 1 183 | 12 384 |
| 2004 | 355 431 | 823 | 18 509 |
| 2005 | 454 047 | 1 378 | 20 556 |
| 2006 | 857 931 | 1 510 | 25 002 |
| 2007 | 1 270 825 | 1 458 | 26 948 |
| 2008 | 1 486 442 | 1 462 | 32 000 |
| 2009 | 1 365 456 | 1 031 | 25 472 |
| 2010 | 1 654 439 | 946 | 23 627 |
| 2011 | 1 657 472 | 957 | 25 339 |
| 2012 | 1 996 552 | 928 | 27 960 |
| 2013 | 1 920 179 | 910 | 24 958 |
| 2014 | 2 085 638 | 463 | 24 970 |
| 2015 | 2 320 000 | 391 | 24 510 |
| 2016 | 2 419 561 | 2 549 | 25 486 |
| 2017 | 2 855 071 | 1 025 | 27 737 |
Ground transportation
Buses: a city bus operated by MPK runs between the airport and the centre of Wrocław (Dworcowa street). Line 106 (day) or 206 (night). The ticket will cost 3,40 PLN (~ 0,80 €).
From December 6, 2017 Polbus-PKS started an express bus called "WRO Airport Express" connecting the airport with the central bus station, which is located in the basement of the shopping mall "Wroclavia". The route is serviced by the comfortable Mercedes Benz Tourino with free Wi-Fi. Coaches run every 50 minutes. The first bus from the Wrocław bus station leaves at 03:20 and the last at 23:30. From the airport, the first cruise at 4:10, the last at 1:00. The journey takes 23–44 minutes. A single ticket costs 10 PLN (~ 2,50 €).
The airport also serves taxi corporations, Uber and iTaxi.
The airport offers 3000 parking spaces. There are car rentals at the airport. Travelers using vehicles from the Vozilla City Electric Car Rental can park for free in the VIP car park, located closest to the terminal.
There is also a bike path that leads to the airport.
See also
References
- ^ "EAD Basic - Error Page". www.ead.eurocontrol.int.
- ^ "latamy z WROclawia » Maintenance Mode". latamyzwroclawia.pl.
- ^ "Ryanair zakłada własną klasę w szkole we Wrocławiu. Absolwent może zarabiać nawet do 25 tys. PLN miesięcznie - Fly4free.pl - tanie loty i sposoby na tanie bilety lotnicze". Fly4free.pl - tanie loty i sposoby na tanie bilety lotnicze (in Polish). Retrieved 2018-09-07.
- ^ "Wrocławskie lotnisko otrzymało prestiżową nagrodę". 23 March 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Charter flights". charterflights.r.pl. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f "air and charter tickets". itaka.pl. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Coral Travel". coraltravel.pl.
- ^ a b "Destinations". Bulgarian Air Charter.
- ^ http://www.pasazer.com/news/39377/brussels,airlines,opozniaja,start,lotow,z,wroclawia.html
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s "Charter flights". Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ "Winter season at Wizz Air. Liquidated, suspended and new routes". pasazer.com. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
- ^ "Annual statistics", ulc.gov.pl. Link accessed 2012-05-28.
- ^ "Cargo - Port Lotniczy Wrocław". airport.wroclaw.pl.
External links
Media related to Wrocław-Strachowice Airport at Wikimedia Commons- Official website
