Liege Airport , previously called Liege-Bierset Airport, is an
international airport
An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports, and feature longer runways and have faciliti ...
located in
Grâce-Hollogne, 5
nautical miles
A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( of a degree) of latitude at the eq ...
(9.3
kilometres; 5.8
miles) west
of the city of
Liège
Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
. The airport mainly focuses on
air freight
Air cargo is any property carried or to be carried in an aircraft. Air cargo comprises air freight, air express and airmail.
Aircraft types
Different cargo can be transported by passenger, cargo or combi aircraft:
* Passenger aircraft use th ...
. At the end of 2021, freight traffic reached 1,412,498 tonnes (+26%). Liege Airport is now the 5th biggest cargo airport in
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
and the 22nd biggest in the world.
Overview
The airport is located in
Grâce-Hollogne,
Liège Province
Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is the easternmost province of the Wallonia region of Belgium.
Liège Province is the only Belgian province that has borders with three countries. It borders (clockwise from the north) the Dutch province of Limburg, the ...
, north-west of the city of
Liege, in the east of Belgium. The first terminal on the site opened in 1930.
It is mainly used for freight/cargo operations, but also serves a number of destinations for passengers (mainly
charters). Liege is located in the centre of the ''golden triangle''
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
–
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
–
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
that handles 66% of European freight, and 75% when taken together with London. In 2018, it was the seventh biggest cargo airport in Europe. Liege Airport is the biggest cargo airport in Belgium, and the third-biggest for passengers after
Brussels Airport
Brussels Airport is the main international airport of Belgium. It is located in the municipality of Zaventem in Flemish Brabant, northeast of Brussels. Also informally known as Brussels-National Airport or Brussels-Zaventem Airport, Brussels ...
and
Brussels South Charleroi Airport. It is the global hub of
ASL Airlines Belgium (the former ''TNT Airways'') and is also used by several other cargo carriers on a scheduled or irregular basis.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
As of July 2023,
TUI fly Belgium is the only airline offering scheduled and seasonal passenger flights at Liege Airport.
Cargo
Statistics
Accidents and incidents
*On February 20, 2021, a Boeing 747-400 freighter airplane, flying
Longtail Aviation flight 5504, which was bound for
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
from the nearby
Maastricht Aachen Airport in the Netherlands, had to divert to the airport after take-off after one engine caught fire and debris fell over the town of Meerssen. Two people on the ground were injured.
Ground transportation
By car
The airport is located next to the
E42 (exit 3), close to an important highway junction.
By bus
An express bus (
number 57) links the airport to
Liege-Guillemins where connections can be made with
local, national and high speed international trains (
Thalys
Thalys (French: ) was a brand name used for high-speed rail, high-speed train services between Paris Gare du Nord and both Amsterdam Centraal and German cities in the Rhein-Ruhr, including Aachen, Köln Hauptbahnhof, Cologne, Düsseldorf Hauptba ...
,
ICE
Ice is water that is frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 ° C, 32 ° F, or 273.15 K. It occurs naturally on Earth, on other planets, in Oort cloud objects, and as interstellar ice. As a naturally oc ...
).
Bus number 53 goes to Liege city centre (Place Saint-Lambert) where connections are available with Liege-Saint-Lambert railway station and bus hub, and to Pont-de-Seraing railway station and bus hub.
Buses 83 and 85 connect the airport with Liege's city centre (Place Saint-Lambert) where connections are available with Liege-Saint-Lambert railway station and bus hub, and Bierset-Awans railway station.
See also
*
Transportation in Belgium
Notes
References
External links
*
*
Scale model of the new Liège airport, photographs of 1992.from the Site of the Walloon regional archives (fr).
Site of the Walloon regional archives. Progress of work on the airport facilities and runways. Photographs from 1994Progress on various building sites in 1998: runway, control tower, etc.from the Site of the Walloon regional archives (fr).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liege Airport
Airports in Liège Province
World War II airfields in Belgium
Airports established in 1914
Transport in Liège
Grâce-Hollogne