Aberdeen Airport
Aberdeen Airport Aberdeen/Dyce Airport Port-adhair Obar Dheathain | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Heathrow Airport Holdings Limited | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | Aberdeen Airport Limited | ||||||||||||||||||
| Serves | Aberdeen | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Dyce, Aberdeen | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 215 ft / 66 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www.aberdeenairport.com | ||||||||||||||||||
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  EGPD Location of airport in Aberdeen | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Helipads | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2011) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Aberdeen Airport (Template:Lang-gd) (IATA: ABZ, ICAO: EGPD) is an international airport, located at Dyce, a suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, approximately 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) northwest of Aberdeen city centre.[1] Over 3.1 million passengers used Aberdeen Airport in 2011, an increase of 11.5% compared with 2010, making it the 14th busiest airport in the UK.[2] The airport was the second busiest airport in Scotland, and sixth busiest in the United Kingdom by number of flight movements in 2011.[2]
The airport is owned and operated by BAA, which also owns and operates five other UK airports,[3] and is itself owned by ADI Limited, an international consortium, which includes Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and GIC Special Investments, that is led by the Spanish Ferrovial Group.[4]
Aberdeen Airport is a base for BMI Regional and Eastern Airways. The airport also serves as the main heliport for the Scottish offshore oil industry. With the utilization of newer aircraft, helicopters can reach northern most platforms on both the East and west of Shetland areas. However, Helicopters frequently use Wick, Kirkwall, Scatsa and Sumburgh for refuelling stops.
The airport has one main passenger terminal, serving scheduled and charter holiday flights. In addition, there are three terminals dedicated to North Sea helicopter operations, used by Bristow Helicopters, CHC-Scotia, and Bond Offshore Helicopters. There is also a small terminal adjacent to the main passenger terminal, Broomfield House, used primarily for oil company charter flights to Scatsta in Shetland, operated by Eastern Airways
History
The airport opened in 1934, established by Eric Gandar Dower, intended to link the northern islands of Scotland with London.
During Second World War the airfield became a Royal Air Force station - RAF Dyce. It was the site of the Dyce Sector Operations Room within No. 13 Group RAF. Although fighters were based there throughout the Battle of Britain to provide protection from German bombing raids from Occupied Norway, it was mainly used as a photographic reconnaissance base.
Anti-shipping operations by Coastal Command were carried out from RAF Dyce as well as convoy escort.
The airfield was bombed by the Luftwaffe on 26 July 1940 and 27 August 1940, no damage was reported. A decoy site ('Q' Site) was located at Harestone Moss near Whitecairns. The aim of this site was to create the impression of an active airfield during the night. The decoy worked on around four occasions, where several raids resulted in bombs being dropped on the decoy site. The decoy site had a small underground bunker that housed a generator, this was used to power a decoy 'flarepath' in addition to rotating lamp to be used to give the impression of a taxiing aircraft.
A Spitfire IIa crashed at the east side of the airfield on 19 November 1941 during attack practise with a target glider being towed. F/O Zaoral is buried in the old Dyce graveyard, where some German aircrew are also buried that crashed in Aberdeen in 1940.
A significant wartime event occurred in May 1943 when a German, Junkers Ju 88 fighter-bomber landed here; it was flown to Scotland by its crew, who wanted to defect to the Allied side.[5] The surrender of this aircraft was of great intelligence value at the time, as it was fitted with the latest FuG 202 Liechtenstein BC A.I radar. The aircraft survives and is displayed in the RAF Museum in London.[5]
On 17 August 1943, a Mosquito crashed following a stall in the circuit, crashing onto a house in Dyce village; another Mosquito on 10 April 1944 crashed on approach to the airfield.
On the 26th of December 1944, A Messerschmitt BF109G signalling intentions to surrender crash landed at the airfield.
On May 16, 1945, two pilots were killed when a Wellington bomber crashed on landing wrecking a goods train in Dyce Station.
During air raids in the Second World War, aircraft were moved to East Fingask beside Oldmeldrum. One RAF building still remains at East Fingask, where aircrews waiting for the "All Clear" before returning to Dyce airfield. Virtually nothing remains from the war era at the airport due to expansion and development of the industrial estates around it.
The original airport terminal was located at the East Side where the Airport Social club and Bond Offshore helicopters are located, a new terminal was built along with a new control tower to handle the increase in air traffic.
The airport was nationalized in 1947 and was transferred to the control of the British Airports Authority (BAA) in 1975. From 1967 and 1970 there were regular flights to Moscow and Toronto; these were later stopped due to cost related problems.
With the discovery of North Sea oil, helicopter operations began in 1967, linking the growing number of oil rigs to the mainland. As Aberdeen became the largest oil-related centre in Europe, the airport became the world's largest commercial heliport. Today, Aberdeen Airport handles more than 37,000 rotary wing movements carrying around 468,000 passengers annually. Helicopters account for almost half of all aircraft movements at the airport.
Until March 2005, aircraft were not allowed to take-off or land between 22:30 and 06:00 local time due to noise constraints. The city council overturned this ban, however, despite some Dyce residents' objections, and the airport is now open 24 hours a day to fixed-wing aircraft[6] with a quota count of QC4 or below, and the overnight restrictions still apply to helicopters.[1]
General aviation (light aircraft) flight training for private pilots licenses takes place from the East Side of the airport and based in the ground Handling agents premises. The ground handling agent there also manages the VIP flights and corporate jets that park on the Eastside Apron.
The air ambulance (fixed wing) is based on the eastside apron in a dedicated hangar, the company operates King-Air aircraft from Aberdeen.
Aberdeen, being a major city in the Oil industry has a number of oil company charter flights, these have included flights to South America and also Korea (via Abu Dhabi). Flights from the USA are regular visitors and a military flight from Afghanistan has also landed.
On 6 October 2011, a 124-metre extension to the main runway at the airport was opened, almost eight months ahead of schedule.[7]
Plans
Aberdeen Airport has now[when?] begun work on a £10 million construction project to attract more international routes.
BAA expects to spend £60million on extending the runway farther still to allow bigger, more modern aircraft to fly from Aberdeen to destinations across the Mediterranean, North Africa and North America, as well as building a bigger, better-equipped terminal and new parking stands for aircraft. During the construction phase of the runway extension and taxiiway, the airport's military past has been revealed. To date two pieces of WW2 ordnance have been unearthed. The reason for this is the taxiway extension route straight runs straight through the old bomb dump.
BAA predicts passenger numbers at Aberdeen will rise to 5.9 million by 2030, and says the expansion will create more than 1,200 jobs at the airport and many more across Scotland.[8]
Refurbishment work will see the installation of a segregated walkway for passengers, as well significant enhancements to the international arrivals hall and improvements to jet parking stands.
The first phase of the work will be completed early next year[when?], with all upgrades conforming to UK Border Agency requirements.
Phases two and three will then involve additions to the international arrivals hall, centring on improving its passport control and baggage reclaim facilities as well as increasing floor space.
A separate £2 million project to transform the terminal forecourt at Aberdeen Airport got underway in July 2008 and was completed that autumn.
The former Airport social club building has been renovated by Bond Offshore helicopters, this will be for future passenger use.
Virgin Atlantic plans to launch a new service to London Heathrow in 2013 to compete with British Airways.[9]
Airlines and destinations
Scheduled flights
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Aer Lingus Regional operated by Aer Arann | Dublin |
| Air France operated by Régional | Paris-Charles de Gaulle |
| BMI Regional | Bristol, Esbjerg, Groningen, Manchester, Norwich |
| British Airways | London-Heathrow |
| British Airways operated by BA CityFlyer | London-City |
| Eastern Airways | Bristol, Cardiff, Durham Tees Valley, Humberside, Leeds/Bradford, Newcastle upon Tyne, Norwich, Nottingham/East Midlands, Southampton, Stavanger, Stornoway, Wick |
| EasyJet | London-Gatwick , London-Luton |
| Flybe | Belfast-City, Birmingham, Jersey, Manchester |
| Flybe operated by Loganair | Kirkwall, Sumburgh |
| KLM Cityhopper | Amsterdam |
| Lufthansa operated by Lufthansa CityLine | Frankfurt |
| Scandinavian Airlines | Copenhagen, Stavanger |
| Widerøe | Bergen, Stavanger |
Charter flights
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| BA Cityflyer | Summer charter: Barcelona [Begins May 2013], Malaga |
| BH Air | Summer charter: Bourgas |
| Iberworld Airlines | Summer Charter Palma de Mallorca |
| Pegasus Airlines | Summer charter: Dalaman |
| Small Planet Airlines | Summer charter: Catania, Dubrovnik, Porto, Seville, Verona |
| Thomas Cook Airlines | Tenerife-South Summer charter: Dalaman, Enfidha, Palma de Mallorca, Reus, |
| Thomson Airways | Summer charter: Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca
Winter Charter: Tenerife-South |
Charter flight Information based on summer 2012 schedule for summer seasonal and winter 2012/2013 for winter seasonal[10]
Cargo
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Ben Air | Kirkwall, Sumburgh |
| Loganair | East Midlands, Edinburgh |
| West Air Atlantic | East Midlands |
2011 traffic statistics
| Rank | Airport | Passengers handled |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  United Kingdom - London Heathrow Airport |
652,520 |
| 2 |  Netherlands - Amsterdam Schiphol Airport |
272,104 |
| 3 | United Kingdom - London Gatwick Airport |
177,765 |
| 4 |  Norway - Stavanger Airport |
152,384 |
| 5 | United Kingdom - London Luton Airport |
147,688 |
| 6 | United Kingdom - Manchester Airport |
144,547 |
| 7 |  France - Paris-Charles De Gaulle |
117,193 |
| 8 | United Kingdom - Birmingham Airport |
83,011 |
| 9 | United Kingdom - Sumburgh Airport |
69,086 |
| 10 | United Kingdom - Norwich Airport |
61,701 |
Facilities
 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (December 2011) |
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The airport terminal provides various shopping and eating facilities before and after security, including WHSmith, Boots, Dixons, Costa Coffee and duty free stores. In addition, the airport's other facilities include, car hire, internet access, bureau de change, tourist information services and executive lounges (British Airways, Servisair and Eastern Airways).[citation needed]
There is also a Thistle Hotel and Speedbird Inn on the airport site. A New Premier Inn and Marriott Hotel have been granted planning permission and will start construction on the site within 2012.
BMI Regional has its head office in Aberdeen Airport East.[12]
For Flight Training, Eurocopter and Bristow Helicopters both have helicopter flight Simulators in buildings at the airport. Cabro Aviation also operate GA flight training at the Eastside of Aberdeen Airport.
Incidents and accidents
- On 3 March 2009, seven protesters from Plane Stupid occupied a taxiway at Aberdeen Airport, barricading themselves within a makeshift wire enclosure while two further protesters occupied the roof of the main terminal building. Their actions were in protest at the proposed extension to the Airport runway, and Donald Trump's plan to create a Golf Resort in the area. After a number of hours, the group eventually ended their protest, and were arrested by Police.
- On 22 June 2006, a City Star Airlines Dornier 328 (TF-CSB) operating a passenger flight from Stavanger, Norway, overshot the end of the airport's runway by several hundred yards as it came in to land. None of the 16 passengers and 3 crew members on board were injured.
- On 24 December 2002 a Swearingen Metroliner III (OY-BPH) of Danish operator North Flying crashed after take off from Aberdeen on a positioning flight to Aalborg in Denmark. Immediately after take-off the aircraft was suspected to have suffered a major power loss in its right engine and crashed into a field just to the south of the airport. It slid along the field and through a fence onto Dyce Drive, a main road into the airport, where it hit a moving car and then came to rest. The two crew and driver of the car survived the accident, with only one crewmember sustaining minor injuries.[13]
- On 13 June 2001 a Gama Aviation Beechcraft 200 Super King Air (G-BPPM) crashed at Aberdeen when its undercarriage collapsed on landing. The aircraft slid down the runway for around 500 metres before coming to rest. The flight had departed Aberdeen for Humberside but returned after a problem was discovered with the undercarriage. The two crew and four passengers were unhurt.[14]
- On 4 July 1983, Bristow Helicopters AS332L Super Puma (G-TIGD) crashed on landing at Aberdeen. During the approach to Aberdeen from the North Hutton platform, a loud bang was heard, followed by severe vibration. A PAN call was made to ATC by the crew. Shortly before landing control was lost and the helicopter struck the runway heavily on its side. 10 of 16 passengers received serious injuries. A tail boom panel had become detached in flight and damaged all five tail rotor blades. The resulting imbalance to the tail rotor assembly led to the separation of this unit and subsequent loss of control.
- In the late 70s, a Trident Aircraft overshot the runway ending up at the Northern end of runway 34 (35 at the time)
- On 2 September 1947 Vickers Viking C.2 VL245 of the RAF King's Flight crashed in a field at Newhills, 3 km from Aberdeen Airport. The aircraft suffered an engine failure while climbing out. All 11 on-board survived the forced landing.
Transport
Rail
The airport is linked to nearby Dyce railway station by the 80 Dyce Airlink shuttle bus which runs between the station, airport, heliport and Kirkhill industrial estate every 20 minutes between 06:45 and 19:00. Journey time between the airport and station is 15 minutes.
Following an increase in the frequency of train services to Dyce station, First ScotRail now provides an almost half-hourly service to and from Aberdeen during the day.
Additionally many more trains from the south have now been extended to stop at Dyce, giving the station direct links to Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and intermediate stations, as well as stations northwards on the line to Inverness.
Bus
Aberdeen Airport is served by local and express bus services operated by First Aberdeen and Stagecoach Bluebird. There is a dedicated No.727 bus service each 20 minutes to the main bus and rail station in central Aberdeen. Chartered buses can also be booked with local operators.
Road
The airport lies on the main A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road, being only a few kilometres from the city centre itself.
References
- ^ a b c Aberdeen/Dyce - EGPD
- ^ a b c CAA: UK Annual Airport Statistics
- ^ UK airports owned and operated by BAA
- ^ BAA: "Who we are"
- ^ a b Individual history: Junkers Ju88 R-1 W/Nr.360043/PJ876/8475M Museum Accession Number 78/AF/953 (pdf), RAF Museum, retrieved 14 February 2010
- ^ "Airport given overnight approval". BBC News. 2 March 2005. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
- ^ "Aberdeen Airport runway extension opening". Aberdeen Airport. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
- ^ "BAA wants a 'truly international gateway'".
- ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-19329706
- ^ Aberdeen Airport Charter Timetable
- ^ http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/80/airport_data/2011Annual/Table_12_1_Intl_Air_Pax_Route_Analysis_2011.pdf
- ^ "General Conditions of Carriage." British Midland. Retrieved on 28 December 2011. "British Midland Regional Ltd Registered Office Aberdeen Airport East Wellheads Drive Dyce Aberdeen AB21 7EU"
- ^ "Accident Report, OY-BPH" (PDF). UK AAIB. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
- ^ "Accident Report, G-BPPM" (PDF). UK AAIB. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
External links
- Official website
- Photo of eastside terminal 1970s
- Photo of old control tower and RAF buildings 1970s
- Photo of airport 1980s with new terminal and control tower
- RAF Dyce decoy airfield at Harestone Moss with Bunker, bomb craters and flarepath direction shown
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