St. Helena Airport

St. Helena Airport
Characteristics
ICAO code	FHSH
IATA code	HLE
Coordinates	15 ° 57 '33 "  S , 5 ° 38' 45"  W Coordinates: 15 ° 57 '33 "  S , 5 ° 38' 45"  W.
Height above MSL	310 m (1017  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center	7 km southeast of Jamestown
Local transport	Bus routes A, B, A2 and B2
Basic data
opening	May 11, 2016
operator	From October 5, 2018: St Helena Airport Ltd (SHAL); until October 2, 2018: Basil Read (with support from Lanseria Airport )
Terminals	1 (3500 m²)
Passengers	7649 (2018)
Start-and runway
02/20	1850 m × 45 m concrete

Location of the airport in the east of the island

The St. Helena Airport ( IATA : HLE , ICAO : FHSH , English St Helena Airport ) is an airport on the island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic . The airport was approved in May 2016, the first commercial flight on scheduled services took place on October 14, 2017.

The airport is located on the plateau near Prosperous Bay (partially extending into the Levelwood district ) in the Longwood district on the east coast of the island.

The airport was closed from October 2nd to 5th, 2018, as the South African operator filed for bankruptcy. St Helena Airport Ltd (SHAL) has been operating the airport since October 5, 2018.

Infrastructure

The runway has a length of 1850 meters, of which 1550 and 1535 meters can be used for landings. It is sufficient for most of the smaller short- and medium-haul aircraft such as the Airbus A319 or the Boeing 737-700. Originally, a usable runway length of 1850 meters was planned, which would also have enabled use by A320 and B737-800 aircraft. This requirement has been temporarily canceled, but an expansion option is planned.

Flight connections and airlines

Airlink has been connecting Johannesburg to St. Helena via Windhoek in Namibia since October 14, 2017 . The 5th freedom of air for Windhoek to St. Helena has been requested. A first test flight took place on August 21, 2017. It is flown twice a week. There is an onward flight to Ascension once a month .

Since March 2019, the technical stop on the way from Johannesburg to St. Helena no longer takes place in Windhoek, but at Walvis Bay Airport . In addition, Airlink will provide another weekly connection to Cape Town during the southern summer months.

In general, only aircraft that take off from Namibia , Angola or Ascension can fly to the airfield if they are optimally loaded due to the length of the runway. There is a requirement to bring additional fuel with you in order to either circle or fly back to the mainland.

history

As early as 1947 consideration was given to building an airport on the island of St. Helena when the South African Union Defense Force carried out a feasibility study, but with negative results. In 1973 the possibility of building a 2,100 meter long runway in the Deadwood Plain, at Horse Point or in the Prosperous Bay Plain was again examined, but abandoned because of the high costs. In 1999 this idea was taken up again by the island government, according to the original plans an international airport should be built by 2011/12. As a result of the financial market crisis , the plans were temporarily postponed by the British government in December 2008. Finally, in early November was the contract for the construction of the airport with the South African construction company in 2011 Basil Read Pty Ltd signed.

construction

Airport building under construction

St. Helena Plover

Although the location on the plateau is comparatively flat for the island, large amounts of earth and rock had to be moved and a deep gorge had to be filled with around 8 million cubic meters of stone. The best location for the airport, another flat spot on the mountainous island was excluded as near the St. Helena Plover (Engl. Saint Helena plover ) breeds. Following an international tender in February 2007, four companies qualified for the final round of bidders to build the airport and three companies for later operation. The only remaining bidder was the South African construction company Basil Read . Construction began in early 2012. The cement was delivered by ship from the Namibian cement plant in Ohorongo . Rupert's Wharf was built in the north-west of the island and a connection road to the airport construction site in the east was built to unload the 70,000 tons of goods delivered, including 20 million liters of diesel .

The construction costs were estimated at 2.7 billion South African Rand (as of March 2016 about 150 million euros ). Construction began in 2012 and was completed in April 2016. The cost of construction was last £ 285 million.

The historic first airplane landing in the history of St. Helena took place on September 15, 2015 and aroused great interest among the population, and all school children were also exempt from attending school. The aircraft from the company Flight Calibration Services was used to adjust the approach installations and carried out the various usual approaches. The airfield was scheduled to go into operation at the end of February 2016, but was postponed to May 2016 on November 6, 2015. On April 10, 2016, the first jet landed at the airport - also for test flights and for training over a period of 4 days - and the first passenger plane followed on April 18. In May 2016, the processes were finally checked by the responsible authority, Air Safety Support International , and the island's residents were invited to an open day. The certification had taken place three days earlier, on May 10th.

Controversies surrounding the construction

The supporters argue with the end of the lifespan of the supply ship RMS St Helena , which calls the island every three weeks in a five-day crossing from South Africa - this should be decommissioned in 2012. In addition, without the airport, the island is largely cut off from the outside world and offers well-educated residents few job opportunities, which is why many residents moved away - from 1998 to 2008 the population fell from around 5200 to 4300 people. There was also hope that after the construction the economic situation of the island could improve, for example through an expansion of tourism. In a consultative referendum carried out in 2002 , around two thirds of the St. Helenians, some of whom also lived on Ascension, the Falkland Islands and the RMS St Helena , were in favor of the airport.

Criticism arose in particular at the high project costs compared to the likely manageable benefits. In individual British media, the airport has been described as "the most useless airport in the world". Many critics also argue that the island will lose its unique seclusion and the previous sense of community could be lost. The disappearance of numerous endemic plant and animal species is also feared.

Opening and scheduled services

The airport received approval on May 10, 2016. The official opening was planned for May 21, 2016, but was postponed indefinitely on April 26, 2016 due to wind shear at the landing point of the northern approach (runway direction 20). The media then reported that the airport could probably never be opened for scheduled services. However, experts assumed that the opening could take place "within months". Presumably, however, smaller machines would first have to be used that do not fully require the length of the runway and / or at best are capable of a south approach with a tailwind. These considerations were confirmed by the governor in mid-June 2016 . The factory engine Embraer 190 from Embraer ended November 30, 2016 in St. Helena and led on 1 December 2016, several test flights through. The test aircraft with ballast tanks provided further data for the approach to the field on both approach axes. On May 3, 2017, an Airlink plane landed that carried 60 passengers to St. Helena. It was the first major commercial charter flight to the island. The first commercial scheduled flight took place on October 14, 2017, when an Embraer E190-100IGW with 78 passengers from South Africa landed at the airport.

Airlines

On March 16, 2015, the administration of St. Helena announced that Comair had been awarded flight connections to and from St. Helena. They planned weekly connections to and from Johannesburg ( OR Tambo International Airport ) with a Boeing 737-800 . The brand new Comair aircraft ZS-ZWG was delivered in February 2016. This should start operations under British Airways . The first flight, still without passengers, took place on April 19, 2016 and regular operations should start at the end of May.

Atlantic Star Airlines, which was founded in 2012, originally wanted to open up the airfield with Boeing 757 and fly to Cape Town in South Africa , Ascension and with a stopover in Ghana to London , initially carried out as a charter by Titan Airways for March 2016 . In a later phase, flights with TUI Airlines Nederland's Boeing 737s were targeted, which should have flown for the first time on May 22, 2016 from London-Gatwick via Banjul in Gambia . In October 2016, pilots of the Atlantic Star Airlines flew a former Swiss - “Jumbolino” to the island. The Avro RJ100 aircraft with the registration number T7-IXS ( San Marino ) was leased from Tronos and was then flown to Chile . Tronos has other aircraft of the type that Atlantic Star could use for direct flights to Walvis Bay , Cape Town and Johannesburg . Initially, however, the company wanted to serve St. Helena from Ascension twice a week and offer flights on demand.

On December 7, 2016, the government of St. Helena announced the reassignment of flight rights. On April 28, Atlantic Star was notified that their offer was unsuccessful. In June 2017, Airlink was announced as a preferred company. The agreement with the government reduces the business risk.

The weekly scheduled flight from Johannesburg with a stopover in Windhoek began on October 14, 2017 . Due to the adverse conditions, the Embraer E190 used can only be occupied by a maximum of 76 passengers.

Passenger numbers

In the first full year of operation of the airport in 2018, 3831 flight passengers arrived on the island and 3818 left them. The average length of stay of tourists was 11 days.

bus connections

The airport is served by four local public transport bus routes that coincide with the weekly arrivals and departures of Airlink flights.

See also: Traffic in St. Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha

Web links

Commons : Saint Helena Airport  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Aeronautical chart for St. Helena Airport on SkyVector.com
• Official airport website (English)
• Official site for the airport project (English)
• Air Traffic Management - St Helena Project. Page with links to the charts and AIPs for St. Helena Airport. In: ATNS - Air Traffic Navigation Services (English).
• Photos and videos from airport construction (English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ St Helena Airport Information Memorandum & Request for Proposal Air Services to St Helena. St Helena Government, 7 December 2016, p. 9.
2. ↑ St. Helena Airport has to close. AeroTelegraph, October 4, 2018.
3. ↑ OPERATIONS AT ST HELENA AIRPORT St Helena Government Press, October 11, 2018. /
4. ↑ ATNS - Air Traffic Navigation Services (ed.): AIP St Helena: Part 3 - Aerodromes (AD) . January 2020, FHSH AD 2.12 - Runway Physical Characteristics, p. FHSH AD 2-5 , Sp. 3: Dimensions of RWY (M) (English, atns.com [PDF; 107 kB ; accessed on January 13, 2020]).
5. ^ And Construction Frequently Asked Questions, The Runway, How long is the runway. St Helena Airport Project. ( Memento from July 25, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
6. ↑ Saint Helena Airport Project: First project variation order signed ( Memento of April 18, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 890 kB)
7. ↑ LAUNCH OF TICKET SALES FOR ST HELENA AIR SERVICE. St Helena Government, 29th August 2017.
8. ^ Airlink to carry out trial flight to St Helena . African Aerospace, August 10, 2017.
9. ↑ SA AIRLINK TO PROVIDE SCHEDULED AIR SERVICES TO ST HELENA AND ASCENSION ISLAND. St Helena Government, July 21, 2017.
10. ^ Airlink launches second flight to St Helena. Tourism Update, March 13, 2019.
11. ↑ Flights to / from Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) will operate throughout December 2019, January and February 2020 sthelenaairport.com , accessed on February 4, 2020
12. ↑ St. Helena - a prisoner of the wind , NZZ, October 12, 2017
13. ^ Building St Helena Airport Saint Helena Island Info, accessed October 17, 2017.
14. ↑ Tears and joy on St Helena as 'world's most useless airport' finally opens Eye Witness News, October 15, 2017, accessed on October 15, 2017.
15. ↑ ^{a b} Read awarded contract to construct airport on St Helena Island. www. passtgerterminaltoday.com, November 4, 2011
16. ↑ ^{a b} Airport Project early works nearing completion. Access Office SHG, June 26, 2012, issue 11, p. 1 ( Memento from September 10, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 3.7 MB) accessed on July 9, 2012
17. ^ Namibia: Ohorongo Cement to Build New St Helena Airport. Namibia Economist, from allAfrica.com, July 6, 2012. Retrieved July 9, 2012
18. ^ Building St Helena Airport Saint Helena Island Info, accessed October 17, 2017.
19. ↑ ^{a b c} First commercial flight lands on remote St Helena. BBC News, October 15, 2017, accessed October 15, 2017 . 
20. ↑ 'There's nobody in the shops' - flight into history as first plane lands on St Helena ( Memento of the original from September 16, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , sthelenaonline.org, September 15, 2015 (English)  
21. ↑ AIRPORT BOARD GRANTS ADDITIONAL TIME TO ACHIEVE OPERATIONAL READINESS. St Helena Airport Project, November 6, 2015 ( Memento of the original from February 21, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
22. ↑ FIRST JET AIRCRAFT TO LAND AT ST HELENA AIRPORT. ( Memento of the original from April 15, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. St Helena Government, April 11, 2016. 
23. ↑ Raw footage of the Boeing 737-800 Implementation Flight landing at St Helena Airport. St Helena Airport, April 18, 2016. ( Memento of the original from January 19, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
24. ↑ Portrait of the RMS St Helena (English), accessed on August 14, 2015
25. ↑ ^{a b c} UK: Awaiting St Helena's new airport. bbc.com of March 20, 2015 (English), accessed on August 14, 2015
26. ↑ Data at unstats.un.org (English; PDF), accessed on August 14, 2015
27. ↑ Data of the referendum in sudd.ch, accessed on August 14, 2015
28. ↑ ST HELENA AIRPORT CERTIFIED. Saint Helena Government, May 11, 2016. ( Memento of the original from January 19, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
29. ^ Advertisement St. Helena Government. The Sentinel, February 11, 2016, p. 18 ( Memento of the original from February 16, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
30. ↑ AIRPORT OPENING CEREMONY POSTPONED. St Helena Government, April 26, 2016. ( Memento of the original from July 26, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
31. ↑ St Helena hopes to open airport within months. Routes Online, June 6, 2016.
32. ↑ ST HELENA AIRPORT STATEMENT FROM GOVERNOR LISA PHILLIPS. Saint Helena Government, June 10, 2016. ( Memento of the original from January 19, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
33. ↑ A Smooth Landing Basil Read brings in plane as British Government Confi rm they are looking at Alternative 130-Seater Aircraft. The Sentinel, June 23, 2016, p. 11. ( Memento of the original of June 30, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
34. ^ Test Flight Arrived on Wednesday. The St Helena Independent, December 2, 2016, p. 33 (insert).  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
35. ↑ HISTORIC ARRIVAL OF CHARTER FLIGHT. St. Helena Government, May 3, 2017.9
36. ^ New Aircraft to serve St Helena Airport. St Helena Government, March 4, 2016. ( Memento of the original from January 19, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
37. ↑ AIR SERVICES TO ST HELENA. St Helena Government, March 16, 2015 Retrieved March 26, 2015
38. ↑ Comair 737 arrives at new St Helena airport, Flightglobal, April 20, 2016
39. ↑ Atlantic Star Airlines - Our Story February 2, 2020
40. ↑ ATLANTIC STAR AIRLINES PRESS RELEASE. The St Helena Independent, issue 23, May 22, 2015, p. 36  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
41. ↑ Flying High. The Sentinel, March 17, 2016, p. 1 ( Memento of the original from March 25, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
42. ↑ Atlantic Star to partner TUIfly for London-St Helena flights. CH-Aviation, October 29, 2015
43. ↑ Order from Atlantic Star Airlines - Tui flies to Napoleon island St. Helena , aerotelegraph, October 27, 2015
44. ↑ BAe 146 / Avro RJ - MSN 3280 - T7-IXS Airline Aerovias DAP , airfleets.net
45. ^ Atlantic Star Talks Airline Operations for Island. The Sentinel, October 13, 2016, p. 23. ( Memento of the original from October 17, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
46. ↑ AIR SERVICE TENDER LAUNCHED. St Helena Government, 7 December 2016. (PDF)
47. ↑ Atlantic Star unsuccessful in St. Helena Air Access Competition. Atlantic Star Airlines, May 3, 2017.
48. ^ St Helena selects Airlink as preferred bidder in second RFP. CH-Aviation, June 9, 2017.
49. ^ Building St Helena Airport Saint Helena Island Info, accessed October 16, 2017.
50. ↑ Flights to the impossible airport . In: DER SPIEGEL . 36/2017, page 97.SPIEGEL-Verlag, September 2, 2017.
51. ↑ Visitors to St Helena - Highlights in 2018. In: sainthelena.gov.sh. St Helena Government, January 28, 2019, accessed June 24, 2019 . 
52. ↑ Public Transport Service extended to Airport Saint Helena Government, October 7, 2017, accessed on October 20, 2017.