Khodynka (russian: links=no, Ходынский, ''Khodynskiy''), officially Frunze Central Aerodrome, often referred to as Tsentralny (), was an airport in Moscow, Russia, located northwest of the centre of the city.

History

The founding of the aerodrome took place on June 17, 1910 when the announced that the staff of the

Moscow Military District The Order of Lenin Moscow Military District was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The district was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1968. In 2010 it was merged with the Leningrad Military D ...

had approved the allocation of land in the territory of Khodynka field as an airfield. Donations from aviation enthusiasts met much of the cost of the construction of the facility. There resulted a runway and six small hangars for aeroplanes. The official opening took place on October 3, 1910 in the presence of military authorities and of many Russian aviators. made the first takeoff. In 1920 the Scientific-Test Airfield NOA GU RKKVF, which was to become today's

929th State Flight Test Centre named for V. P. Chkalov The 929th State Flight Test Center of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation named after V.P. Chkalov (929 Air Force GLITS) is a Russian aviation research and testing military institution. This is the main military aviation test insti ...

, was established at the airfield. On May 3, 1922 the first ever Russian

international flight An international flight is a form of commercial flight within civil aviation where the departure and the arrival take place in different countries. Regular international passenger air service began in August 1919 with a flight going from Lond ...

on the route Moscow -

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

took place. On July 15, 1923 the first regular domestic passenger flights between Moscow and

Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...

started - the 420 km route took 2.5 hours in a 4-seater AK-1 monoplane. From 1923 to 1926 the facility bore the name "Central L. D. Trotsky Aerodrome" (). Subsequently, it officially became "Central M. V. Frunze Aerodrome" (). From 1932 to 1935, the scientific-testing institute was relocated to Chkalovsky near

Shchelkovo Shchyolkovo ( rus, Щёлково, p=ˈɕːɵlkəvə) is a city and the administrative center of Shchyolkovsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Klyazma River ( Oka's tributary), northeast of Moscow. Population: 112,865 ( 2002 ...

. In 1938 the airport gave its name to the newly opened Moscow Metro station Aeroport to the north of the runway. Khodynka remained the only airport in Moscow until the opening of Bykovo in 1933. (

Tushino Tushino ( rus, Тушино, p=ˈtuʂɨnə) is a former village and town to the north of Moscow, which has been part of the city's area since 1960. Between 1939 and 1960, Tushino was classed as a separate town. The Skhodnya River flows across the ...

opened in 1935, Vnukovo in 1941). Passenger flights stopped in the late 1940s, from 1950s to 2003 aerodrome was used only for ferrying of new Ilyushin aircraft. Khodynka Aerodrome closed in 2003, and the whole site has been redeveloped for other uses. It housed a large number of stored aircraft from

Sukhoi The JSC Sukhoi Company (russian: ПАО «Компания „Сухой“», ) is a Russian aircraft manufacturer (formerly Soviet), headquartered in Begovoy District, Northern Administrative Okrug, Moscow, that designs both civilian and mili ...

and Mikoyan-Gurevich, which were moved to

Lukhovitsy Lukhovitsy (russian: Лухови́цы) is a town and the administrative center of Lukhovitsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Oka River southeast of Moscow. Population: History It was first mentioned in 1594 as the settlement ...

External links

Video report from the abandoned aircraft museum, 2009
{{authority control Defunct airports Airports built in the Russian Empire Airports in Moscow Airports disestablished in 2003