The harsh conditions of Kamchatka prevent the construction of good land roads. But in our age of aeronautics, civilian and military aircraft are helping out. Thirteen airports are located on the peninsula, there are seven landing sites. But what is the most important airport in Kamchatka? And which of them has international status? This will tell our article. We will also consider the services of the main air harbor of the Kamchatka Territory. It is important to know which flights depart from it. Also, for tourists, information on public transport routes connecting the air harbor with the city will be interesting.
Federal Treasury Enterprise (FKP) “Airports of Kamchatka”
In 2010, in order to improve the performance of all air sites on the peninsula and to service air transportation, a single state-owned company was established. It included the FGU Petropavlovsk-Kamchatka Aviation and the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Koryak Aviation Enterprise. Thus, under the unified leadership of the federal state-owned enterprise Kamchatka Airports, eleven hubs were merged: Ozernovsky, Ust-Kamchatsk, Sobolevo, Nikolskoye, Milkovo, Tigil, Palana, Ossora, Pakhachi, Manila and Tilichiki. The FKP also included seven smaller aerodromes, which can be called landing sites: Kamenskoye, Slautnoye, Achayvayam, Apuka, Srednyye Pahachi, Khailino, and also Talovka. This enterprise employs one hundred and ninety-six employees.
And what is the name of the main airport of Kamchatka? Its name comes from the nearest town of Yelizovo. But this hub is located near the capital of the region, therefore it is often called the airport of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
The history of ballooning on the peninsula
In this harsh and wild land, it all started with military aviation. The first airfields appeared here in the thirties of the last century. The 248th Kamchatka Squadron was based in Yelizovo. But on the last day of 1947, the Far Eastern Civil Aviation Administration issued an order to remove the air site from the Russian Air Force and create an independent unit.
In the fifties, it was the only civilian airport. Kamchatka received air links with Khabarovsk in 1958. The year before, a runway capable of receiving the IL-12 and IL-14 liners was built. Immediately after this, the first flight on the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky-Moscow route was carried out using the Tu-104. In the late fifties, the construction of the building of the air station and the hotel was completed. Since 1969, the airport began to receive Yak-40 aircraft, and another ten years later - the L-410. The international status of the air port of Yelizovo received in 1995.
Services
In the summer of 2016, after a long reconstruction, the hub reopened its doors for passengers. A new runway was built. Now it can take fully loaded Boeings (even super-heavy 747 brands), the A310, An-124, Il-96, and Tu-204 airbus. A new command and control center was also put into operation, modern light-signaling system and radio equipment were installed.
Unfortunately, the innovations did not affect the passenger service sector. The international airport (Kamchatka) still consists of a small terminal. And the conditions there are the most Spartan. However, at the Yelizovo airport there is a mother and child room, luggage packing, and left-luggage office. On the second floor are ticket offices for the sale of airline tickets. There is also a lounge for VIP passengers. For 3,700 rubles, a passenger can go through all pre- or post-departure procedures in one hall, including passport and customs control. The price includes porter services.
Scoreboard
The airport (Kamchatka, Yelizovo) takes many regular flights from various cities of Russia. Aeroflot brings passengers here from Moscow (Sheremetyevo), and Rossiya from Vnukovo. The most popular flights are carried out to Khabarovsk, Vladivostok, Irkutsk, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, Yekaterinburg, Yakutsk.
Kamchatka Aviation Enterprise also performs domestic air transportation of passengers and cargo on the peninsula. In addition to domestic traffic, Yelizovo accepts aircraft from abroad. Basically they follow to the resorts of Southeast Asia - to Bangkok and Phuket (Thailand), Nha Trang (Vietnam). But there are also seasonal flights to Anchorage (Alaska, USA) and Osaka (Japan).
How to get to the city
The international airport (Kamchatka) is located directly in the city of Yelizovo. A small road leads to Magistralnaya Street, which is located on the outskirts of the city, and leads through the villages of Dvurechye, Krasny, Nagorny, Novy and Pionersky directly to the northeastern end of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. It will take twenty-nine kilometers. The only way for a passenger to get to the airport at night is to call a taxi. And in the daytime in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky runs a city bus at number 104.