is an
airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
on an
artificial island
An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those tha ...
just off the coast of
Kobe
Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...
, south of
Sannomiya Station
, or simply , is located in the heart of Kobe, Japan. This station is the main railway terminal of Kobe.
Lines
Sannomiya is served by the following railway lines and stations:
*Hanshin Electric Railway (Hanshin Main Line, Main Line) - Kobe ...
[AIS Japan](_blank)
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Opened on February 16, 2006, it primarily handles domestic flights, but can also accommodate international charter flights. In the first year of operation (2006), the airport handled 2,697,000 passengers with an average
load factor of 61.1%. In 2017 it handled 3,071,974 passengers with an average load factor of 79.4%.
History
The city government of Kobe first proposed an airport adjacent to
Port Island
is an artificial island in Chuo-ku, Kobe, Japan. It was constructed between 1966-1980 (Phase 1) and 1987-2009 (Phase 2) at Port of Kobe, and officially opened with an exposition called " Portopia '81." It now houses a heliport, numerous ho ...
in 1971. At the time, government planners were seeking alternatives to the heavily congested
Osaka International Airport
, often referred to as is the primary regional airport for the Kansai region of Japan, including the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe. Classified as a first class airport, it is the airport closest to Kyoto, southwest of Kyoto Station.
...
: the original Kobe Airport plan called for six runways more than in length on a facility. The mayor of Kobe, Tatsuo Miyazaki, declared his opposition to building such a large airport so close to the city, and was re-elected shortly afterward in 1973, defeating a competitor who supported the airport.
Kobe businesses were still interested in the plan, however, and pressed the city government to propose a smaller facility with one runway. This plan was submitted to the Transport Ministry in 1982 as a competitor for the
Kansai International Airport
Kansai International Airport ( ja, 関西国際空港, Kansai Kokusai Kūkō) commonly known as is the primary international airport in the Greater Osaka Area of Japan and the closest international airport to the cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and K ...
plan which was then being supported by the Osaka and Wakayama prefectural governments. After the national government voiced its displeasure with the Kobe proposal, Kobe officially switched its support to the Kansai Airport proposal in 1984, but in 1985 decided to independently fund the construction of another airport.
![PortIslandCloseup 2003262](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/PortIslandCloseup_2003262.jpg)
The construction of the airport was stalled for lack of funding until 1995, when it won national government support as a means for recovering the Kobe economy in the wake of the
great Hanshin earthquake
The , or Kobe earthquake, occurred on January 17, 1995, at 05:46:53 JST (January 16 at 20:46:53 UTC) in the southern part of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, including the region known as Hanshin. It measured 6.9 on the moment magnitude scale and had ...
. Despite ongoing controversy, locals continued to support the plan: in the 1997 mayoral election, the pro-airport coalition won a narrow victory over the anti-airport coalition. Construction began in September 1999 but political controversy continued: 87,000 signatures were collected in a petition to recall the mayor in 2000, and a citizen lawsuit to cancel the project was dismissed in 2004.
The airport finally opened on February 16, 2006, with
Japan Airlines
, also known as JAL (''Jaru'') or , is an international airline and Japan's flag carrier and largest airline as of 2021 and 2022, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Haneda Airport, as w ...
operating the first flight and
All Nippon Airways
, also known as ANA (''Ē-enu-ē'') or is an airline in Japan. Its headquarters are located in Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area of Minato ward of Tokyo. It operates services to both domestic and international destinations and had mo ...
operating the first scheduled flight. Both ANA and JAL announced plans to replace portions of their widebody fleet with a larger number of mid-size aircraft, in part because of a need to fill the excess number of flight slots created by Kobe Airport's construction. The airport handled its first international
business jet
A business jet, private jet, or bizjet is a jet aircraft designed for transporting small groups of people. Business jets may be adapted for other roles, such as the evacuation of casualties or express parcel deliveries, and some are used by pub ...
flight in September 2006.
As part of its bankruptcy restructuring, JAL terminated all services out of Kobe and closed its office on June 1, 2010, in response to which
Skymark Airlines
() is a Japanese low-cost airline headquartered at Haneda Airport in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan. It operates scheduled services with a main base at Haneda Airport, but is also the dominant carrier at Kobe Airport, and the only Japanese airline offerin ...
announced a major expansion at the airport. ANA also cut back services following the airport's opening. Skymark is currently the dominant carrier at Kobe carrying approximately two-thirds of its passengers.
In 2013, Kobe mayor
Tatsuo Yada
is a Japanese politician who became the mayor of Kobe, the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and has a geographic area of ...
endorsed a proposal to consolidate the management of the three Kansai region airports by adding Kobe Airport to the planned sale in 2014 of operating concessions at Itami and Kansai.
Kobe was already the most indebted municipality in Japan with debts of over ¥3 trillion after
Great Hanshin earthquake
The , or Kobe earthquake, occurred on January 17, 1995, at 05:46:53 JST (January 16 at 20:46:53 UTC) in the southern part of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, including the region known as Hanshin. It measured 6.9 on the moment magnitude scale and had ...
, and this project's cost (estimated at over ¥300 billion, or US$3 billion) has made it very controversial. Supporters argue that the third airport can mean increased competition and lower airfares. People in the surrounding regions (
Shikoku
is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...
,
Awaji Island etc.) can now have a closer airport while access to Kansai may be limited. Since the ferry from
Tokushima
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 728,633 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,146 km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the north, E ...
to
Kansai Airport
Kansai International Airport ( ja, 関西国際空港, Kansai Kokusai Kūkō) commonly known as is the primary international airport in the Greater Osaka Area of Japan and the closest international airport to the cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and ...
was discontinued, travellers have had to rely on alternate means of transportation including a bus to Kansai Airport, which takes an hour longer, or to use the local
Tokushima Airport
is a joint civil-military public airport in Matsushige, Tokushima, Japan, near the city of Tokushima.
In addition to scheduled passenger operations, the airport is the base of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Tokushima Air Training Group ...
, which is limited in schedules.
On April 1, 2018, Kansai Airports Kobe founded by
Orix
, styled as ORIX, is a Japanese diversified financial services group headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, and Osaka, Japan.
ORIX offers leasing, lending, rentals, life insurance, real estate financing and development, venture capital, investment an ...
,
Vinci Airport, and
Kansai Airports
is a Japanese corporation established in 2015. Kansai Airports is a member of the Kansai Airports Group, which includes eight companies.
Kansai Airports is currently operating three airports in Japan, Kansai International Airport, Osaka Internat ...
took over the operation of Kobe Airport.
Airlines and destinations
![Kobe Airport concourse](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Kobe_Airport_concourse.jpg)
Kobe has a single passenger terminal with four gates capable of accommodating
widebody aircraft
A wide-body aircraft, also known as a twin-aisle aircraft, is an airliner with a fuselage wide enough to accommodate two passenger aisles with seven or more seats abreast. The typical fuselage diameter is . In the typical wide-body economy c ...
Some international charter flights also use Kobe Airport. Although the airport's runway is not long enough to handle long-range flights to Europe and the Americas, it occasionally handles charters to China and other nearby countries.
The Transport Ministry has capped scheduled domestic operations at 30 daily flights, and has banned international flights with the exception of private aircraft and "own use" charters, in order to prevent overcrowding in the area's airspace and to protect the growth of Kansai Airport.
The flight caps have been a point of controversy with Kobe Airport supporters, who point out that the cap was calculated based on Kansai Airport operating twice as many frequencies as are currently offered: given the current traffic levels at Kansai, Kobe should be able to handle six or seven flights per hour.
Statistics
Ground transportation
![151229 Kobe Port Japan02bs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/151229_Kobe_Port_Japan02bs.jpg)
On February 2, 2006,
Kobe Airport Station
is a railway station on the Port Island Line in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, operated by Kobe New Transit.
Lines
Kobe Airport Station is served by the Port Island Line automated guideway transit.
Station layout
Kobe Airport Station has a sin ...
was connected to
Sannomiya Station
, or simply , is located in the heart of Kobe, Japan. This station is the main railway terminal of Kobe.
Lines
Sannomiya is served by the following railway lines and stations:
*Hanshin Electric Railway (Hanshin Main Line, Main Line) - Kobe ...
in central Kobe by an extension of the existing
Port Liner
The , commonly known as is an urban automated guideway transit (AGT) system in Kobe, Japan, operated by Kobe New Transit. Opened in 1981, the Port Liner was the world's first driverless urban transit system, a few years ahead of the VAL system ...
automated guideway transit
An automated guideway transit (AGT) or automated fixed-guideway transit or automatic guideway transit system is a type of fixed guideway transit infrastructure with a riding or suspension track that supports and physically guides one or more dr ...
system, using
2000 series trains as well as some older
8000 series trains (older trains being gradually replaced by newer ''2000'' ones). Travel time to Sannomiya is 18 minutes. From Sannomiya, it is 21 minutes to
Ōsaka Station
is a major railway station in the Umeda district of Kita-ku, Osaka, Japan, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). It forms the city's main rail terminal in the north.
Although it is officially served by only the JR Kobe/Kyoto Lines ( ...
and 51 minutes to
Kyoto Station
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the city ...
by JR special rapid express.
Kobe Airport is connected to Kansai Airport by the , a high speed ferry which completes the airport-to-airport journey in 31 minutes for ¥500 for visitors to Japan.
There are bus services to
Shin-Kobe Station
is a railway station on the San'yō Shinkansen and the Seishin-Yamate Line serving the city of Kobe, Japan, and the surrounding area. It is located to the north of Kobe city centre, at the foot of Mount Rokkō. The Shinkansen trains mostly run ...
(on the
San'yō Shinkansen
The is a line of the Japanese Shinkansen high-speed rail network, connecting Shin-Osaka in Osaka with Hakata Station in Fukuoka, the two largest cities in western Japan. Operated by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West), it is a westward cont ...
), Sannomiya Station, and
Kōbe Station
Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whi ...
in 25–38 minutes. A single trip to Shin-Kobe Station costs ¥330.
See also
*
Port of Kobe
The Port of Kobe is a Japanese maritime port in Kobe, Hyōgo in the Keihanshin area, backgrounded by the Hanshin Industrial Region.
Located at a foothill of the range of Mount Rokkō, flat lands are limited and constructions of artificial isla ...
*
Port Island
is an artificial island in Chuo-ku, Kobe, Japan. It was constructed between 1966-1980 (Phase 1) and 1987-2009 (Phase 2) at Port of Kobe, and officially opened with an exposition called " Portopia '81." It now houses a heliport, numerous ho ...
*
Hanshin Industrial Region
The is one of the largest industrial regions in Japan. Its name comes from the ''on''-reading of the kanji used to abbreviate the names of Osaka (大阪) and Kobe (神戸), the two largest cities in the megalopolis. The GDP of this area (Osaka a ...
References
External links
*
Japan Guide: Kobe Airport*
*
Kobe Airport Terminal*
Kobe Airport Marine Airfrom
Skymark Airlines
() is a Japanese low-cost airline headquartered at Haneda Airport in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan. It operates scheduled services with a main base at Haneda Airport, but is also the dominant carrier at Kobe Airport, and the only Japanese airline offerin ...
*
*
{{authority control
Airports in Japan
Artificial islands of Kobe
Artificial island airports
Transport in Kobe
Airports established in 2006
Buildings and structures in Kobe
2006 establishments in Japan