Eilat Airport
Encyclopedia
Eilat Airport also known as J. Hozman Airport , is an Israel
i airport located in the city of Eilat. It mostly handles domestic flights to Tel Aviv
and Haifa
with international flights operating instead to Ovda International Airport
, but a few international flights on aircraft that can handle the relatively short runway
use Eilat as well. Eilat Airport is located in the central area of the city, next to Route 90 (The Arava Road)
. The airport is expected to cease civilian operations by 2014 when Eilat's new international airport should become operational. The airport is a focus city for Arkia Israel Airlines
and Israir Airlines.
Eilat Airport was established in 1949 by the Israel Air Force, following the 1948 Israeli War of Independence. During its early years, the airport aimed to establish a comprehensive set of connections to towns across the country, most notably with Tel Aviv
and Haifa
. Consequently, a regular route from Eilat to Lod Airport (now Ben Gurion International Airport
) was started. It was not much longer before a route to Haifa Airport
became operational. In December 1950, following their establishment, Arkia Israel Airlines
became the largest domestic operator at Eilat Airport, taking the position of the former companies Eilata and Aviron. To this day, they retain this position. Later, in 1964 the runway was expanded to 1500 m, and a passenger terminal was built. Five years later, the runway was further expanded increasing the length to 1900 m. In 1975, Eilat Airport started to attract Scandinavia
n airlines. The first international flight arrival to Eilat, of the Danish airline, Sterling Airlines
landed in this year. Since then, many international routes have been established directly linking Eilat with Europe, however, the airport is still unable to handle landings of large aircraft which have to fly to Ovda International Airport
.
In the 1994 Peace Agreement between Israel and Jordan
it was decided that operations were supposed to be transferred from Eilat Airport to Aqaba Airport
. The original plan was to rename Aqaba Airport as Aqaba-Eilat Peace International Airport. The agreement was never followed, however, and an agreement between the two countries in March 1997, stipulated that domestic flights would continue to use Eilat Airport, whilst no further action to move international flights took place. In August 2005, a Katyusha rocket fired from Jordan
landed near a taxi traveling just 15 yards (13.7 m) from the airport perimeter fence
.
Today, Eilat Airport sustains peak loads concentrated into Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. On Thursdays and Sundays, flights are handled in a period of a few hours in the mornings and on Saturdays only the evening hours are used. Often there are days when 10,000 passengers on 120 flights are channelled through the 2,800 m2 terminal, counting as one of the highest peak loads worldwide in this category.
Although the airport is capable of handling Boeing 767
aircraft, for large numbers of these aircraft, significant investment would be needed. Consequentially, the largest aircraft regularly flying to the airport are Boeing 757
. The main problem at the airport is the lack of ramp space, with just two parking positions for large aircraft. As a result, El Al
operates regular shuttle flights from Ben Gurion International Airport
carrying passengers from around the world on 757s, 737s
and ATRs.
The small size of the airport is perhaps best illustrated with the fact that a Boeing 757 cannot taxi past another aircraft to parking positions. As a result, controllers are responsible not only for ensuring that valuable space is utilised, but also ensuring that other aircraft are kept circling until larger aircraft are parked. Despite these limitations, the airport successfully handles ten to twenty times more traffic than airports of a comparable size. It is for this reason that plans to relocate the airport are so important in the short-term scale. In 2006, a NIS
5.5 million renovation programme of Eilat Airport's terminal and runway was undertaken, designed to sustain the airport until it is replaced in the near future.
. There were numerous reasons behind this idea. Primarily, the fact that safety would be improved as in its current location, there is the chance of aircraft crashing into buildings in the city. Other reasons were the pure value of the land which the airport occupies, and the fact that the airport is dividing the city of Eilat into two parts with the hotels and tourist areas on one side, and the residential buildings on the other.
On July 24, 2011 the Israeli cabinet approved the construction of Israel's second international airport to be built in Timna, 18 kilometers north of Eilat. The airport will be named after the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, who was killed in the 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia disaster and his son Assaf Ramon, who died six years later when his F-16 fighter jet crashed over the West Bank. The new airport in Timna will consolidate the commercial aviation operations taking place in Eilat and Ovda which together serve about 1.5 million passengers per year.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i airport located in the city of Eilat. It mostly handles domestic flights to Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
and Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
with international flights operating instead to Ovda International Airport
Ovda International Airport
Ovda Airport , is a military and civilian airport in Israel, and the country's second international airport, located in the south of the country about north of the city of Eilat...
, but a few international flights on aircraft that can handle the relatively short runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
use Eilat as well. Eilat Airport is located in the central area of the city, next to Route 90 (The Arava Road)
Route 90 (Israel)
Route 90 is the longest Israeli road, at about 480 km, and stretches from Metula and the northern border with Lebanon, along the western side of the Sea of Galilee, through the Jordan River Valley, along the western bank of the Dead Sea , through the Arabah valley, and until Eilat and the...
. The airport is expected to cease civilian operations by 2014 when Eilat's new international airport should become operational. The airport is a focus city for Arkia Israel Airlines
Arkia Israel Airlines
Arkia Israel Airlines , usually referred to as Arkia is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. It is Israel's second largest airline operating scheduled domestic and international services as well as charter flights to destinations in Western Europe...
and Israir Airlines.
History
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
and Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
. Consequently, a regular route from Eilat to Lod Airport (now Ben Gurion International Airport
Ben Gurion International Airport
Ben Gurion International Airport , also referred to by its Hebrew acronym Natbag , is the largest and busiest international airport in Israel, handling 12,160,339 passengers in 2010...
) was started. It was not much longer before a route to Haifa Airport
Haifa Airport
Haifa International Airport is an Israeli airport located in Haifa. It is located to the east of the city, close to Kishon Port and Israel Shipyards and mainly serves civilian flights, with some military usage. Most passenger flights passing through the airport are domestic operations to Eilat...
became operational. In December 1950, following their establishment, Arkia Israel Airlines
Arkia Israel Airlines
Arkia Israel Airlines , usually referred to as Arkia is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. It is Israel's second largest airline operating scheduled domestic and international services as well as charter flights to destinations in Western Europe...
became the largest domestic operator at Eilat Airport, taking the position of the former companies Eilata and Aviron. To this day, they retain this position. Later, in 1964 the runway was expanded to 1500 m, and a passenger terminal was built. Five years later, the runway was further expanded increasing the length to 1900 m. In 1975, Eilat Airport started to attract Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n airlines. The first international flight arrival to Eilat, of the Danish airline, Sterling Airlines
Sterling Airlines
Sterling Airlines A/S was a low-cost airline with its head office at Copenhagen Airport South in Dragør, Dragør Municipality, Denmark. It was created in September 2005 through the merger of two Danish airlines — Sterling European Airlines and Maersk Air — which had been bought by the Icelandic...
landed in this year. Since then, many international routes have been established directly linking Eilat with Europe, however, the airport is still unable to handle landings of large aircraft which have to fly to Ovda International Airport
Ovda International Airport
Ovda Airport , is a military and civilian airport in Israel, and the country's second international airport, located in the south of the country about north of the city of Eilat...
.
In the 1994 Peace Agreement between Israel and Jordan
Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace
The Israel–Jordan Treaty of Peace was signed in 1994. The treaty normalized relations between the two countries and resolved territorial disputes. The conflict had cost roughly US$18.3 billion...
it was decided that operations were supposed to be transferred from Eilat Airport to Aqaba Airport
Aqaba Airport
Aqaba Airport is an airport located in the vicinity of Industrial City , northern suburb of Aqaba in Jordan. The location of Aqaba is unusual, for within a 15 miles radius there are three other countries, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Israel...
. The original plan was to rename Aqaba Airport as Aqaba-Eilat Peace International Airport. The agreement was never followed, however, and an agreement between the two countries in March 1997, stipulated that domestic flights would continue to use Eilat Airport, whilst no further action to move international flights took place. In August 2005, a Katyusha rocket fired from Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
landed near a taxi traveling just 15 yards (13.7 m) from the airport perimeter fence
Perimeter fence
A perimeter fence is a structure that circles the perimeter of an area to prevent access. These fences are frequently made out of single vertical metal bars connected at the top and bottom with a horizontal bar. They often have spikes on the top to prevent climbing. Residential perimeter fences are...
.
The airport today
EWLINE
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Today, Eilat Airport sustains peak loads concentrated into Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. On Thursdays and Sundays, flights are handled in a period of a few hours in the mornings and on Saturdays only the evening hours are used. Often there are days when 10,000 passengers on 120 flights are channelled through the 2,800 m2 terminal, counting as one of the highest peak loads worldwide in this category.
Although the airport is capable of handling Boeing 767
Boeing 767
The Boeing 767 is a mid-size, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It was the manufacturer's first wide-body twinjet and its first airliner with a two-crew glass cockpit. The aircraft features two turbofan engines, a supercritical wing, and a conventional tail...
aircraft, for large numbers of these aircraft, significant investment would be needed. Consequentially, the largest aircraft regularly flying to the airport are Boeing 757
Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration...
. The main problem at the airport is the lack of ramp space, with just two parking positions for large aircraft. As a result, El Al
El Al
El Al Israel Airlines Ltd , trading as El Al , is the flag carrier of Israel. It operates scheduled domestic and international services and cargo flights to Europe, North America, Africa and the Far East from its main base in Ben Gurion International Airport...
operates regular shuttle flights from Ben Gurion International Airport
Ben Gurion International Airport
Ben Gurion International Airport , also referred to by its Hebrew acronym Natbag , is the largest and busiest international airport in Israel, handling 12,160,339 passengers in 2010...
carrying passengers from around the world on 757s, 737s
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
and ATRs.
The small size of the airport is perhaps best illustrated with the fact that a Boeing 757 cannot taxi past another aircraft to parking positions. As a result, controllers are responsible not only for ensuring that valuable space is utilised, but also ensuring that other aircraft are kept circling until larger aircraft are parked. Despite these limitations, the airport successfully handles ten to twenty times more traffic than airports of a comparable size. It is for this reason that plans to relocate the airport are so important in the short-term scale. In 2006, a NIS
Israeli new sheqel
The Israeli New Shekel is the currency of the State of Israel. The shekel is divided into 100 agorot...
5.5 million renovation programme of Eilat Airport's terminal and runway was undertaken, designed to sustain the airport until it is replaced in the near future.
The future
Since the beginning of the 1990s the authorities in Eilat have considered relocating the airport, approximately 20 km north of Eilat, to the Ora Well area near Be'er OraBe'er Ora
Be'er Ora is a communal settlement near Eilat in the far south of Israel. It belongs to the Hevel Eilot Regional Council. It is located in the Arava region, just west of Highway 90, north of kibbutz Eilot, and south of Elifaz and Timna Park...
. There were numerous reasons behind this idea. Primarily, the fact that safety would be improved as in its current location, there is the chance of aircraft crashing into buildings in the city. Other reasons were the pure value of the land which the airport occupies, and the fact that the airport is dividing the city of Eilat into two parts with the hotels and tourist areas on one side, and the residential buildings on the other.
On July 24, 2011 the Israeli cabinet approved the construction of Israel's second international airport to be built in Timna, 18 kilometers north of Eilat. The airport will be named after the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, who was killed in the 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia disaster and his son Assaf Ramon, who died six years later when his F-16 fighter jet crashed over the West Bank. The new airport in Timna will consolidate the commercial aviation operations taking place in Eilat and Ovda which together serve about 1.5 million passengers per year.