Tehran's Imam Khomeini Airport
| Imam Khomeini International Airport فرودگاه بین المللی امام خمینی |
|
|---|---|
|
|
| Characteristics | |
| ICAO code | OIIE |
| IATA code | IKA |
| Coordinates | |
| Height above MSL | 1007 m (3304 ft ) |
| Transport links | |
| Distance from the city center | 30 km southwest of Tehran |
| Street | Tehran-Qom and Tehran-Saveh highways |
| Local transport | Line 1 of the Tehran Metro |
| Basic data | |
| opening | May 8, 2004 |
| operator | Iranian Ministry of Transport |
| Terminals | 2 |
| Passengers | 4,986,477 |
| Air freight | 98,904 t |
| Flight movements |
36,827 |
| Runways | |
| 11R / 29L (closed) |
4249 m × 45 m asphalt |
| 11L / 29R | 4198 m × 45 m asphalt |
The Imam Khomeini International Airport ( Persian فرودگاه بین المللی امام خمینی) ( IATA code : IKA , ICAO code : OIIE ) is the largest international airport in the Iranian capital Tehran in front of Mehrabad International Airport . The airport is located about 30 km southwest of Tehran, near the places Eslamshahr and Robat-Karim. It serves as a hub for Iran Air , Mahan Air , Meraj Airlines , Iran Aseman Airlines , Qeshm Airlines , Taban Air , Zagros Airlines and Caspian Airlines . The airport is set up to accommodate and handle wide-body aircraft such as the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747 . Currently (November 2015) the airport is served by 40 airlines with destinations in 30 countries. The airport was named after Ruhollah Khomeini .
history
Construction began before the Islamic Revolution of 1979. The originally planned design was based on the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport and had been developed by TAMS, an association of US architects. A local joint venture called TAMS-AFA was formed to carry out the construction.
After the Islamic Revolution, the plans for the new building were initially not pursued by the Iranian government until a decision was made to have the airport designed and built with local know-how. The French company ADP was chosen to support the local architects and engineering companies. A local construction company (Kayson) was awarded the contract for the complete construction of the airport as general contractor. After two years, the contract was terminated and a company belonging to the religious foundations Bonyad Mostazafan (poor) & Janbazan (martyrs), the M&J Foundation, commissioned the construction.
After the construction of the first terminal hall had been completed by the M&J Foundation , the Iranian civil aviation organization decided to transfer the operation of the airport and the construction of the second terminal hall to the Turkish-Austrian company TAV.
The opening was originally scheduled for February 11, 2004, the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. After numerous delays in construction, there were also problems with the delivery of supplies, in particular the delivery of kerosene by the Ministry of Oil was unclear. The opening took place on May 8, 2004.
Shortly before the opening on May 8, 2004, the head of the semi-state Iran Aseman Airlines announced that his airline would not relocate its activities from the previous international airport in Tehran-Mehrabad to the new airport Imam-Khomeini, as it would not be operated by Iranian companies. As a result, the operation of the airport was transferred from TAV to Iran Air .
Due to security concerns of the Revolutionary Guard regarding the operation of the airport by a foreign company, the airport was occupied by security forces of the Revolutionary Guard immediately after the airport opened on May 8, 2004. The reason for this was suspicions in the General Staff of the Revolutionary Guard that foreign workers might still be at the airport. As a result of this situation, only one Emirates flight from Dubai was able to land on May 8, 2004 , the immediately following Iran Air flight from Dubai was diverted to Isfahan because Tehran-Mehrabad airport refused to land. All other flights were subsequently diverted to Tehran-Mehrabad.
On May 11, 2004, the State Secretary Ugur Ziyal and the Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Charrazi met in the Turkish Foreign Ministry , at which the Turkish State Secretary made clear his displeasure with the closure of the airport and the termination of the contract with the Turkish company. The airport was then reopened on May 13, 2004 after the commander of the Revolutionary Guard found that foreign companies were no longer operating at the airport. Since then, the airport operator has changed twice, in 2005 a consortium of Mahan Air , Kish Air and Caspian Airlines became operators. A short time later, the Ministry of Transport was responsible for most of the airport's operations, while the Revolutionary Guards and the Ministry of Oil are also responsible for parts of the operation.
Terminal building
The terminal building is divided into three levels:
On the lower level, the baggage claim area for arriving flights is divided into two halls, followed by customs control. There is already a bank counter at Bank Melli Iran for currency exchange in the security area. Also on this level, outside the security area, are various information and service counters (taxi companies, etc.), toilets and a fast-food restaurant belonging to the “BOOF” chain. Outside the building are the taxi stops on this level.
On the middle level, arriving passengers are directed from the gates to the central entry area. The counters for issuing short-term visitor visas are also located here. Once the immigration counters have passed, passengers are guided from here by escalators to the lower level to the baggage claim area.
The departure area is on the upper level. There are various shops and a waiting area here. The check-in counters are already behind the first security check and are only accessible with a flight ticket or travel plan - but this area can easily be left again. Check-in is possible no earlier than three hours before departure.
After passing the departure counters from the check-in area, you enter the central departure area. There are more waiting areas as well as various shops, cafés and other services. The second security check in front of the departure gate can only be passed after a flight has been called up on the display monitors. In the waiting areas at the gates there are only seats and toilets.
From the perspective of the traveler, the airport looks modern, bright and well-equipped. It is open 24 hours a day as many flights arrive or depart at night. English language skills are sufficient to cope with all steps of arrival and departure without assistance. For travelers, special attention should be paid to the sometimes separate handling of men and women, especially during security checks.
Location and transport links
The airport is located 30 kilometers southwest of the city between the Tehran – Qom and Tehran – Saveh highways . The connection to the Tehran subway was completed on August 7, 2017 with line 8, now part of line 1. Downtown Tehran can be reached via the motorway from the airport in 45 minutes to 1.5 hours (depending on traffic conditions and time of day). To catch a domestic flight, you often have to change to the inner-city Mehrabad Airport , which can also be reached by taxi.
From Isfahan the airport is served directly by shuttle buses.
Incidents
- On 15 July 2009, a crashed Tupolev Tu-154 of the Caspian Airlines (Mark EP-CPG ) on the flight to Yerevan 15 minutes after the start near Qazvin from, all 168 people on board died.
- On January 8, 2020, a Boeing 737-800 on Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was accidentally shot down by the Iranian military shortly after take-off. All 167 passengers and 9 crew members were killed.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Statistics on the Iranische Flughafen Holding website ( Memento of the original from May 31, 2014 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.
- ^ Accident report TU-154 EP-CPG , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on May 21, 2017.
- ↑ Iran admits shooting down of Ukrainian plane. Bayerischer Rundfunk , January 11, 2020, accessed on January 11, 2020 .
