Innsbruck Airport , also known locally as ''Kranebitten Airport'', is the largest

international airport An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries around the world. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports and they must feature longer r ...

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

in western

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. It is located approximately from the centre of

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol and the fifth-largest city in Austria. On the River Inn, at its junction with the Wipp Valley, which provides access to the Brenner Pass to the south, it had a p ...

. The airport, which was opened in 1925, handles regional flights around the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

, as well as seasonal international traffic to further European destinations. During the winter, activity increases significantly, due to the high number of skiers travelling to the region.

Facilities

The terminal has no airbridges; mobile stairways or the aircraft's own

airstair An airstair is a set of steps built into an aircraft so that passengers may board and alight the aircraft. The stairs are often built into a clamshell-style door on the aircraft. Airstairs eliminate the need for passengers to use a mobile st ...

s are used for boarding. The airport can handle aircraft up to the size of a

Boeing 767 The Boeing 767 is an American wide-body aircraft developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The aircraft was launched as the 7X7 program on July 14, 1978, the prototype first flew on September 26, 1981, and it was certified o ...

. In February 2017, it was announced that the current passenger terminal, which was inaugurated for the

1964 Winter Olympics The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games (german: IX. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Innsbruck 1964 ( bar, Innschbruck 1964, label=Austro-Bavarian), was a winter multi-sport event which was celebr ...

will be replaced with a new, larger facility that is planned to be constructed from 2019. Innsbruck Airport is well known for having a difficult approach due to surrounding terrain, prohibiting certain aircraft types from operating at the airport. The approach and descent is a very complicated process—the Alps create vicious winds and currents, which pilots have to deal with throughout the process. It is a Category C airport, an airport with special difficulties requiring pilots to have special training before using it. Approach or ascent over the eastern end of the runway goes over the inner city at fairly low altitude. Innsbruck Airport served as the base of

Tyrolean Airways Tyrolean Airways, officially ''Tyrolean Airways Tiroler Luftfahrt GmbH'', was an Austrian regional airline based in Innsbruck with its hub at Vienna International Airport and its homebase at Innsbruck Airport. It was owned by the Lufthansa Grou ...

and

Welcome Air Welcome Air, officially ''Welcome Air Luftfahrt GmbH & Co KG'', was an Austrian charter airline with its head office in Innsbruck. History On 14 June 1995 Jakob Ringler, since 1983 one of the directors of Tyrolean Air Ambulance (founded 1963 as ...

until their demise, although the newly established independent technical division ''Tyrolean Airways Luftfahrzeuge Technik GmbH'' remains here. Innsbruck also used to accommodate the head offices of

Air Alps Air Alps, (stylized as Air A!ps, previously operating as KLM Alps, legally AAA-Air Alps Aviation), was an Austrian regional airline based in Innsbruck. History Establishment and early years Air Alps was founded in 1998 by Air Engiadina (49 ...

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines offer regular scheduled and charter flights at Innsbruck Airport:

Statistics

Ground transportation

The airport is connected to the city and to Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof by city bus ''F''. The bus runs every 15 minutes and takes 18 minutes to reach the city.

References

External links