Geneva airport

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Aéroport International de Genève
Genève Aéroport
Logo Genève Aéroport.svg
Geneva airport from air 2.jpg
Characteristics
ICAO code LSGG
IATA code GVA
Coordinates

46 ° 14 '11 "  N , 6 ° 6' 26"  E Coordinates: 46 ° 14 '11 "  N , 6 ° 6' 26"  E
Height above MSL 430 m (1411  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center 4 km north of Geneva
Street highway A1
train InterCity ( SBB at Genève Aéroport station )
Local transport Geneva trolleybus and bus ( TPG )
Basic data
opening 1922
operator Aéroport International de Genève (autonomous public company)
surface 730 ha
Terminals 2 (use of Terminal 2 only in the winter season)
Passengers 17,900,000 (2019)
Air freight 88,971 t (2017)
Flight
movements 		186,000 (2019)
Capacity
( PAX per year) 		11,500,000
Employees 6850
Runways
04/22 3900 m × 50 m concrete
04L / 22R 823 m × 30 m grass



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Locations of the three Swiss national airports

The Geneva International Airport ( IATA code GVA , ICAO code LSGG , brand name Genève Aéroport , originally Aéroport de Genève-Cointrin ) is the international airport of Geneva and the second largest airport of Switzerland . The airport is located on the territory of the municipality of Le Grand-Saconnex and the town of Cointrin in the municipality of Meyrin .

The most important local airlines are the low-cost airline EasyJet , which operates a hub at the airport, and the national Swiss airline, Swiss . The airport benefits from the numerous international organizations based in Geneva, including the United Nations (UN) and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement , and is an important location for VIP aviation. Immediately to the southeast of the airport is the Geneva exhibition center Palexpo , where u. a. the Geneva Motor Show takes place.

Together with Zurich and Basel airports , it is one of the three so-called national airports in Switzerland.

history

Historic aerial photo by Werner Friedli from 1968

Location search and first years of operation

The first airfield in the canton of Geneva existed in the area of ​​the municipality of Collex-Bossy . At the end of 1910, the Club Suisse d'Aviation acquired a site on the outskirts of Bossy and built a grass runway and two hangars . Commissioning took place on July 14, 1911, when François Durafour landed coming from Avenches . In February 1913, Avion Genevois SA took over operations. After the outbreak of the First World War , the slope was hardly used due to the proximity to the border. Civil aviation turned to temporary runways in Plan-les-Ouates and on the outskirts of Geneva (Saint-Georges and Vessy). In 1919 the Grand Council of the Canton of Geneva wanted to purchase the orphaned site in Collex-Bossy for the construction of an airfield, but refrained from doing so due to excessive price demands. Instead, in 1920 the canton acquired an area of ​​around 1000 × 600 m between Cointrin and Meyrin .

By 1922 a small and two larger wooden hangars and an administration building with a restaurant were built there. On June 1, 1922, the Ad Astra Aero began air traffic on the Geneva – Dübendorf – Nuremberg / Fürth route . In 1930 six companies flew to Geneva with seven lines, mainly due to the city's role as the seat of the League of Nations . The wooden hangars were replaced by steel structures by 1931. In 1937 Geneva-Cointrin had the first concrete runway in Switzerland; it was 495 m long and 21 m wide. There were also paved taxiways. However, there was still no suitable terminal building. In 1938, Geneva had by far the highest cargo volume of all Swiss airfields.

Creation of a fait accompli during the war

In 1938/39 the canton generously acquired land to expand the airport. While development in other Swiss cities stalled after the beginning of the Second World War , Geneva took advantage of the temporary suspension of civil aviation to carry out major expansion work. A concrete runway over 1 km long, a new station building and other infrastructure measures were planned. After approval by the Federal Aviation Office, the Geneva State Council applied for a credit of 4.96 million francs in August 1940, which the Grand Council approved on May 7, 1941. Construction work began five months later. These had to be interrupted in July 1942 when the Federal War Economics and Labor Office blocked all cement deliveries. After a protest by the Geneva cantonal government, 1,000 tonnes were approved two months later, and the remaining 900 tonnes required by spring 1943.

In May 1943, 800 m of the runway were completed, whereupon the responsible State Councilor Louis Casaï requested a further 1,470 tons of cement. The War Economics and Employment Office caused a delay again, this time because of the shortage of unemployed. In August 1943, Casaï complained in an official letter of protest that the federal authorities preferred projects in German-speaking Switzerland, while Geneva was disadvantaged. A month later, the office still approved the delivery of cement, but it was already foreseeable that the runway would be too short for modern aircraft. The Grand Council approved a further loan of 4 million francs during the ongoing construction work. By November 1944, the runway had grown to 1200 × 50 m and was basically usable. Also in 1944 there was an architectural competition for the terminal building. The project was awarded to Jean-Marie Ellenberger and Jean Camoletti , but the rapid development of civil aviation made several modifications necessary. Due to the policy of creating a fait accompli, Geneva had a considerable lead over other Swiss airports at the end of the war.

First intercontinental airport in Switzerland

In 1945 the Federal Council decided to further expand the airport facilities, as only Geneva was able to connect Switzerland to global air traffic in the immediate post-war period. Subsidized by federal funds, the runway was extended to 2000 m by June 1946. In the same month, work began on the terminal building. On October 1, 1945, an unplanned intercontinental flight landed in Geneva for the first time, a Douglas DC-4 operated by Trans World Airlines . This company took the New York – Geneva – Rome – Cairo route into operation on April 8, 1946 , finally connecting Switzerland to intercontinental air traffic. For the time being, Swissair was satisfied with flights within Europe and did not start intercontinental traffic from Geneva until 1951 (airline to New York).

Without waiting for federal funds to be promised, the canton of Geneva began construction work on additional buildings in 1947. It was not until 1948 that the Federal Assembly subsequently decided on a contribution of 11 million francs (at a total cost of 37 million). The high-rise buildings including the terminal building were opened as part of an international flight meeting from May 20 to 22, 1949. In the post-war years, Geneva-Cointrin counted the most passengers in Switzerland; Zurich-Kloten only took over the top position in 1949 . Until 1953, Geneva was also a leader in freight traffic.

Expansion for jet and wide-body aircraft

The rapid technological advances in the jet aircraft sector made it necessary to expand the airport further after a few years. If the runway was extended to the southwest, the Lyon – Geneva railway line and a road would have had to be relocated and a factory would have to be demolished. So there was only an extension to the northeast, where the Swiss-French border protruded. In October 1953, the Geneva State Council asked the Federal Council to start negotiations with France on an exchange of territory. A binational airport like Basel-Mulhouse was explicitly not wanted. Negotiations began in May 1955, with resistance from the directly affected municipality of Ferney-Voltaire on the French side . Finally, an agreement was reached on an exchange of 40 hectares . The corresponding state treaty was signed on April 25, 1956 and ratified at the beginning of 1958. For this purpose, France received its own sector on the airport premises and an adjoining duty-free route .

Air France Boeing 727 (1968)

Without waiting for the ratification of the state treaty or the approval of the federal councils, the canton of Geneva began to upgrade the runway, which in the winter of 1956/57 reached a length of 2500 m. Although a fait accompli had been created, the National Council and Council of States approved the federal contribution of CHF 32.306 million in September 1957 (at a total cost of CHF 95.609 million). In the summer of 1960, the runway reached its intended length of 3900 m. In August 1962, the canton of Geneva presented a 193.662 million francs expansion project for the buildings, whereupon the National Council and Council of States increased the federal contribution to 52.045 million in March 1963. On May 17, 1968, the new terminal building was inaugurated, which was designed for 5 million passengers annually.

At the end of the 1960s, the population became more and more aware of the problem of aircraft noise . The Geneva State Council now pursued a much more cautious strategy and deliberately refrained from planning a parallel runway. Instead, he limited himself to improving the existing infrastructure. In 1970, the Grand Council approved a corresponding loan application, but reduced the amount. A referendum was successfully held against this decision . The cantonal referendum of February 7, 1971 resulted in a wafer-thin yes majority of 229 votes. A year later, the federal councilors made a contribution of a further 33.741 million. With just over 100 million that were available, the taxiways, the gate and the terminal building for large aircraft were expanded. A building for general aviation and two high-rise buildings for Swissair were also built.

Further improvements

Swissair MD-81 (1986)
Construction work on the new east wing (left)

In 1980, the Federal Office for Civil Aviation published a new airfield concept that replaced the one from 1945. The focus was now on the qualitative expansion, taking into account spatial planning and environmental protection considerations. Based on this concept, the federal councils approved the “1981–1985 construction program”. The construction projects at Geneva Airport were estimated at a total cost of 360.85 million, of which the federal government would take over 58.15 million. A new cargo building, new hangars and various technical improvements were planned. In addition, in June 1980 the federal councils approved the connection to the railway network including an airport station. The cost of building the railway was estimated at 189 million, but in 1983 a further 37.6 million had to be approved due to significant cost increases. The Genève Aéroport station was opened on May 31, 1987, and the entire expansion program was completed in 1989.

Since it opened, the airport had been run directly by the Geneva cantonal administration's transport department. This changed with a law passed by the cantonal parliament: Since January 1, 1994, the airport has been an autonomous public company with a board of directors and management. A master plan for the further expansion of the airport was implemented from 2007 to 2015. The "T1 +" project increased the total area of ​​the airport by 40%. The construction work mainly comprised a new arrival area, the modernization and expansion of the check-in area and the creation of a centralized security checkpoint; there was also a gastronomy zone and a shopping area. In November 2014, the implementation of the second phase of the master plan, the expansion of the east wing to handle intercontinental flights, began.

Investments

Terminals

Main terminal of the airport

Geneva Airport has two terminals , T1 and T2. The main terminal 1 is divided into five passenger areas (A, B, C, D and F). All gates in area A are Schengen gates, as are some in area D. The others are for destinations outside the Schengen area. The previous Pier C was actually a provisional solution from 1975 to handle three wide-body aircraft. In 2012 the airport decided to replace it with the new "East Wing" (Aile Est) project. This new pier will have parking spaces for six large-capacity aircraft and will be characterized on the one hand by modern, attractive, but also ecologically contemporary architecture / building technology. Completion is planned for 2020.

The secondary terminal T2 is only used for charter flights during the winter season . This is the original terminal of Geneva Airport from 1949. The facilities in Terminal T2 are modest. Passengers are only checked in here and then driven by bus to the main terminal. The airport company wanted to develop T2 into a low-cost terminal, but several airlines threatened to leave Geneva, as EasyJet would have had a clear advantage due to the lower fees. The further future of T2 is uncertain.

Runways

The runway 04/22 with a length of 3900 m and a width of 50 m is available for arrivals and departures in Geneva . This has a capacity of almost 40 flights per hour. A grass runway for light aircraft that is 823 m long and 30 m wide runs parallel to this.

Others

The International Air Transport Association ( IATA) maintains a representation in Geneva that is responsible for the whole of Switzerland. The airport was also the headquarters of the Airports Council International until 2010 .

particularities

French sector with customs inspection post

Before Switzerland joined the Schengen Agreement in 2008, passenger area F was used exclusively by passengers who came here from France or were on their way there. It has six gates, two of which have passenger boarding bridges . This French sector is the result of a state treaty of 1958. It can be reached from the municipality of Ferney-Voltaire via a road tunnel with a subsequent toll-free road. In this way, people from the neighboring Pays de Gex region can avoid Swiss customs. The French sector still exists to bring goods to and from France, but passport and immigration controls have been abandoned under the Schengen Agreement.

aims

In the summer of 2018, 123 destinations were directly accessible from Geneva Airport. Of these, 102 are in Europe and 21 on other continents. The most important flight destinations in Europe include London, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels and Moscow. Significant non-European connections lead u. a. to Abu Dhabi , Dubai , New York JFK , Newark , Montreal , Beijing , Tel Aviv and Washington .

Transport links

Airport train station

The airport can be reached via the A1 motorway and national connecting roads. The most important access point for public transport is the airport train station, which opened in 1987. Trains run from the Genève Aéroport underground station to Genève-Cornavin station in Geneva and to major Swiss cities. The Geneva public transport company Transports publics genevois provides several bus routes to the airport, including trolleybus route 10 . There is also line Y to the French municipalities of Ferney-Voltaire and Thoiry and a long-distance bus to Annecy .

Incidents

  • On January 24, 1966, this accident was largely repeated. An Air India Boeing 707-437 (VT-DMN) was en route from Bombay to New York . During the descent to the planned stopover in Geneva, she was flown into Mont Blanc , France , and crashed about 60 m below the summit on a rock ridge. All 117 people on board (106 passengers and 11 crew members) were killed (see Air India flight 101 ) .
  • On October 17, 1982, an Egypt Air Boeing 707-366C (registration number SU-APE ) hit the ground shortly before the runway, ricocheted off, slid sideways over the left edge of the runway, turned 270 degrees and slid backwards. The right wing was cut off and a fire broke out that the airport fire brigade quickly put out. The aircraft was a total write-off, but all 172 passengers and ten crew members survived.

statistics

The following table shows the development of the number of passengers (from 2000 also freight volume and flight movements).

year Passengers Freight in t Flight movements
1946 65,716
1950 196'382
1955 441,153
1960 854,562
1965 1,473,182
1970 2,752,630
1975 3,713,721
1980 4,539,303
1985 5,150,596
1990 5,973,564
2000 7,826,303 68,604 170,751
2005 9,410,917 59,314 170,936
2010 11,880,397 67'238 177'400
2014 15,152,928 72,540 187,597
2015 15,772,081 65,074 188,829
2016 16,532,690 69,296 189,840
2017 17,351,816 88,971 190,778

See also

literature

  • Bernard Lescaze: L'envol d'une ville. Histoire de l'aéroport de Genève . Editions Slatkine, Geneva 2009, ISBN 978-2-8321-0354-8 .
  • Sandro Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Origin and development of the civil aviation infrastructure in Switzerland, 1919–1990 . Chronos Verlag, Zurich 2014, ISBN 978-3-0340-1228-7 .

Web links

Commons : Aéroport International de Genève  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 17.9 million passengers at Geneva Airport. In: airliners.de. January 15, 2020, accessed January 17, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Federal Office of Civil Aviation FOCA: State airports. Retrieved June 13, 2020 .
  3. ^ Collex-Bossy: le 1er aérodrome permanent du canton de Genève. Pionnair GE, accessed November 13, 2015 (French).
  4. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 62-63.
  5. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 63-65.
  6. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 101-102.
  7. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 102-103.
  8. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 153.
  9. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 156.
  10. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 157.
  11. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 158.
  12. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 211.
  13. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 212.
  14. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 225.
  15. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 247-248.
  16. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 269-270.
  17. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. Pp. 272-273.
  18. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 274.
  19. ^ Conseil d'administration et direction. Genève Aéroport, 2015, accessed on November 14, 2015 (French).
  20. ↑ Plan directeur 2007–2015. Genève Aéroport, 2015, accessed on November 14, 2015 (French).
  21. ↑ Geneva Airport is building a new terminal. aero-Telegraph , May 20, 2016, accessed March 8, 2017 .
  22. ↑ Formalités de Schengen. Genève Aéroport, accessed on November 14, 2015 (French).
  23. ↑ Destinations from Geneva. Genève Aéroport, accessed on November 13, 2015 .
  24. ^ Accident report L-749 VT-CQP , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on November 23, 2017.
  25. ^ Accident report B-707 VT-DMN , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on December 1, 2017.
  26. ^ Accident report B-707 SU-APE , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on December 1, 2017.
  27. ↑ Fehr: The development of the third dimension. P. 342.
  28. ↑ Faits et cipher. Genève Aéroport, 2015, accessed on November 13, 2015 .