Lapraka airfield
| Lapraka airfield | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Characteristics | |
| IATA code | ZOOH |
| Coordinates | |
| Height above MSL | 90 m (295 ft ) |
| Transport links | |
| Distance from the city center | 2 km west of Tirana |
| Basic data | |
| opening | 1939 |
| surface | 29.4 ha |
| Start-and runway | |
| 13/31 | 850 m |
The Lapraka airfield , also Tirana Aerodrome ( Albanian Fusha e aviacionit Tiranë-Laprakë ), was an airfield that was located in the Albanian capital Tirana .
 
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The airfield within Tirana |
Beginnings of civil aviation in Albania
In the absence of a developed road network or other means of transport in Albania , a range of domestic flights was established in the second half of the 1920s. The Company Adria Aero Llloyd flew from 1 May 1925 by Tirana first two times a week Shkodra , Korca and Vlora on, and later other places in Albania: Gjirokastra 1930, subsequently also Kukes , Peshkopi and Kuçova . It was flown first with the single-engine Albatros L 58a , later with the Junkers F 13 and from 1931 with the Savoia-Marchetti S.71 . In addition to passengers, mail and other freight were also transported. Initially, they landed on a 400 by 200 meter field that was south of the city center at the location of today's pyramid .
Adria Aero Lloyd , founded with a German participation by Deutsche Aero-Lloyd , passed into Italian hands in 1927: Società Aerea Mediterranea , a state institution and a predecessor of Ala Littoria , was the new owner. From 1935 the concession for air traffic was transferred to Ala Littoria.
Regular flights from Brindisi have been offered since April 1928 . Direct connections to Rome were added later. In 1938 Aeroput started a connection via Podgorica to Belgrade . During the Italian occupation of Albania from 1939 there were connections to Milan , Ancona , Bari , Sofia , Thessaloniki and Trieste . In September 1937, Deutsche Lufthansa tested a connection from Berlin to Kabul with numerous stopovers, including Tirana and Tehran .
Foundation of the airfield
In 1934, construction began on the airfield in the Lapraka district on the western edge of Tirana. The concrete runway was 1200 meters long and up to 400 meters wide. According to other sources, however, Ala Littoria built one or two large hangars as early as 1930 in Lapraka - "at the end of the road that connects Tirana with Durrës" ( Osman Myderizi : Tirana 1604–1937) . In 1938 a company building was inaugurated. In 1939 work began on a new hangar; further company buildings were also built. The 1930s airfield was modern and had lighting for night flights.
At that time Albania was one of the few countries in the world where air transport was better developed than other modes of transport.
Towards the end of the Second World War, the German occupiers had to switch to another runway in the area of today's airport, since the runway in Lapraka could no longer be used after the Allied bombings .
Use at the time of the Socialist People's Republic
After the Communists came to power , civil aviation ceased. Albania's airfields were used for military purposes and for agricultural aviation. The Albanian Air Force , founded in 1951, was initially stationed in Lapraka. It had Jak-18 and Po-2 .
Until 1958, when the new Tirana airport was opened further northwest near Rinas , the Lapraka airfield was also used for civil flights. As a result, however, it lost its importance. Nevertheless, the military was still stationed in Lapraka, especially An-2 for the transport of troops and material. In addition to the military, the government also used the airfield. Medical flights were also carried out from here. The area administered by the Ministry of Defense had an area of 29.4 hectares.
Use since the 1990s
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After the collapse of the communist system, the airfield continued to lose importance. The expanding city of Tirana enclosed the airfield area more and more. Soon only helicopters were stationed in Lapraka .
On March 14, 1997, during the lottery uprising, the Bundeswehr evacuated around 100 people in helicopters from the airfield in Albania, which had fallen into anarchy and turmoil similar to civil war. During the air evacuation, known as Operation Libelle , there were exchanges of fire with unknown shooters on the airfield - the first battle by German soldiers since the Second World War.
In 2005 the last troops of the Air Force left Lapraka - the runway had already turned into a street that opened up new residential buildings. A heliport , which was primarily used by the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Health for emergencies, was still in operation. Today the medical helicopter transport unit in Lapraka is operationally subordinate to the helicopter air base in Farka , but flies on behalf of the Ministry of Health. At least one EC-135 is flown .
In 2008, Bashkia Tirana began to convert the former airfield into a park. Numerous residential buildings have been built around the former piste. Instead of the piste, there is now a long park next to a road, also called Parku 1 kilometer .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f E.L .: Historia e Aviacionit Civil Shqiptar. In: Opinion.al. February 24, 2019, accessed August 10, 2019 (Albanian).
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Rezarta Delisula: Tirana-Mahnia . Maluka, Tirana 2018, ISBN 978-9928-26018-5 , Albania in the 30s, where aircrafts replaced cars, p. 71-73 .
- ↑ a b Spiro Vasil Mëhilli: Tirana (1920-1944) . Mediaprint, Tirana 2014, ISBN 978-9928-08155-1 , Transporti ajror në Shqipëri, p. 154 ff .
- ↑ a b Gazmend Bakiu: Tirana e vjetër . Mediaprint, Tirana 2013, ISBN 978-9928-08101-8 , Transporti ajror, p. 216-218 .
- ^ Fleet list of Deutscher Aero Lloyd AG (1923-1926). In: European Airlines. June 17, 2010, accessed August 10, 2019 .
- ↑ Figali Golemi: Hostori suksesi i Aviacionit Ushtarak Shqiptar . In: Ministria e Mbrojtjes (ed.): Mbrojtja . No. 5 , May 2018, p. 20 ( mbrojtja.gov.al [PDF; accessed on August 11, 2019]).
- ^ A b Albanian Military Air Bases and Airfields. In: aeroflight.co.uk. Retrieved August 10, 2019 .
- ↑ a b Air Force History. In: Armed Forces of Albania. Accessed August 11, 2019 .
- ↑ Operation "Dragonfly". Tirana '97: The Bundeswehr's first battle. In: RP Online. March 14, 2007, accessed on August 11, 2019 : "For the first time after the Second World War, German soldiers were in a battle - they fired exactly 188 shots, according to the later accounts."
- ↑ Njësia e Transportit Mjekësor me helicopter pjesë e strukturave operacionale të Bazes ajrore Farke në Forcing Ajrore. In: Forcat e Armatosura. June 9, 2016, accessed August 11, 2019 (Albanian).
- ↑ Helicopter i ri për shërbimin e transportit mjekësor. In: Ministria e Shëndetësisë. March 25, 2015, accessed August 10, 2019 (Albanian).
- ↑ Dionis Xhafa: Urgjenca ajrore, Vetem 1 helicopter për territorin. In: Shekulli. September 10, 2018, accessed August 10, 2019 (Albanian).
- ↑ Emanuela Sako / Albania: KRRT-ja e Tiranës miratoi projektin për ish-Fushën e Aviacionit. In: Arkiva Shqiptare e Lajmeve. December 28, 2008, accessed August 10, 2019 (Albanian).
- ↑ Airfield Guide: Tirana - Lapraka. In: Scramble. Accessed August 11, 2019 .