is an

international airport An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports, and feature longer runways and have faciliti ...

located west southwest of Komatsu StationAIS Japan
/ref> in the city of Komatsu,

Ishikawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,096,721 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,186 Square kilometre, km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Pr ...

, Japan. It is the largest airport in the

Hokuriku region The is located in the northwestern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. It lies along the Sea of Japan and is part of the larger Chūbu region. It is almost equivalent to the former Koshi Province (Japan), Koshi Province and Hokurikudō are ...

and serves the southern portion of

including the capital of

Kanazawa is the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture in central Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 466,029 in 203,271 households, and a population density of 990 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Etymology The name "Kanazaw ...

(which has its IATA city code QKW), as well as Fukui and the northern portion of

Fukui Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 737,229 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,190 Square kilometre, km2 (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture border ...

. The

Japan Air Self-Defense Force The , , also referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the Aerial warfare, air and space warfare, space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and ...

Komatsu Base (小松基地 ''Komatsu Kichi'') shares the runway with civil aviation; the inland-side taxiway is used by the JASDF and the sea-side one by civilian flights. The base hosts a Kōkū-sai (air festival) every September, featuring demo flights by fighter and

rescue Rescue comprises responsive operations that usually involve the saving of life, removal from danger, liberation from restraint, or the urgent treatment of injury, injuries after an incident. It may be facilitated by a range of tools and equipm ...

aircraft as well as the

Blue Impulse (currently 11 Squadron 4th Air Wing, previously 21 Squadron 4th Air Wing) is the aerobatic demonstration team of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). The team was founded in 1960 as a team of six F-86 Sabres. They changed mounts to the Mits ...

acrobat flight team. It often hosts technical competitions of the JASDF. The "Airspace G" is a large training airspace over the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...

to the north of the base. The airport has a single passenger terminal building serving domestic and international flights. Its international cargo terminal, known as HIACT (Hokuriku International Air Cargo Terminal), is owned by a consortium of government and corporate entities and aims to serve as an international distribution center for cargo from Europe and other continents. Its runway surface was upgraded in late 2006 to enable non-stop freighter flights to and from Europe and North America.

History

The airport was originally a base of the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Construction of the first east-west and north–south runways was completed in 1944. The

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...

took over the base at the end of the war in 1945 and used the site as a radar facility. The airport saw irregular service to Osaka and Nagoya starting in 1955. The base was handed over to the

in 1958 and designated as a jet fighter base in 1960. Komatsu Base was formally inaugurated in 1961. Scheduled service to Osaka and Nagoya began in 1962, using

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper ...

aircraft, followed by

Fokker F.27 The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner developed and manufactured by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. It is the most numerous post-war aircraft manufactured in the Netherlands; the F27 was also one of the most successful Europe ...

service to Tokyo in 1963. The airport's first international service was a charter flight from Hong Kong in 1973. Ishikawa Prefecture set aside funds for an airport promotion committee in 2012 amid expectations that the opening of the

Hokuriku Shinkansen The Hokuriku Shinkansen () is a high-speed Shinkansen railway line connecting Tokyo with Tsuruga, Fukui, Tsuruga in the Hokuriku region of Japan. It is jointly operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR ...

in 2015 would impact traffic on the Komatsu-Tokyo route. *1960 The runway was extended to . Designated as a shared airport for defense and civil. *1964 The runway was extended to to introduce F-104J. *1973 Jet service began with

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the t ...

s. *1979 International scheduled service to

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

began. *1980 B747s were introduced to Komatsu Airport, for flights to

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

*1981 The new domestic terminal complete. *1984 The new international terminal complete. *1994 HIACT (International Cargo Building) complete. Designated as a Free Access Zone. *1994

Cargolux Cargolux, officially known as ''Cargolux Airlines International S.A.'', is the flag carrier cargo airline of Luxembourg with its headquarters and hub at Luxembourg Airport. With a global network, it is among the largest scheduled all-cargo airl ...

began international scheduled freight service between

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

. *2002 The new HIACT terminal complete. *2004 The new

control tower Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled a ...

began operations. *2005 The temporary runway began operation. *2006 Upgrading of the permanent runway complete. Operations switched to the permanent runway. *2007 USAF F-15C, C-17 came for JASDF joint training. *2007 A new domestic cargo building opens.

Statistics

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

JASDF units

Komatsu is the only fighter base on the

coast. The following JASDF units are stationed at Komatsu: * 6th Air Wing ( 第6航空団) ** 303rd Tactical Fighter Squadron (

Mitsubishi F-15J/DJ The McDonnell Douglas - Mitsubishi F-15J/DJ Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather Fighter aircraft, air superiority fighter based on the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle in use by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). The F-15J was produced under ...

)(

Kawasaki T-4 The Kawasaki T-4 is a Japanese subsonic intermediate jet trainer aircraft developed and manufactured by the commercial conglomerate Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Its sole operator is the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), in part due to historic ...

) **

306th Tactical Fighter Squadron The 306th Fighter Squadron is an active United States Air Force unit. It was most recently activated as an active associate unit of the 119th Fighter Squadron of the New Jersey Air National Guard, stationed at Atlantic City Municipal Airport. ...

(

)(

) * Tactical Fighter Training Group * Central Air Civil Engineering Group, 2nd Squadron (中部航空施設隊第2作業隊) * Komatsu Air Rescue Squadron (小松救難隊) –

UH-60J The Mitsubishi H-60 series is a twin-turboshaft engine helicopter based on the Sikorsky UH-60 helicopter family for use by the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF). The SH-60J/K/L are anti-submarine patrol versions for the Japan Maritime Self-Defe ...

and

U-125A The British Aerospace 125 is a twinjet mid-size business jet. Originally developed by de Havilland and initially designated as the DH.125 Jet Dragon, it entered production as the Hawker Siddeley HS.125, which was the designation used until 19 ...

aircraft * Komatsu Air Traffic Control Squadron (小松管制隊) * Komatsu Weather Squadron (小松気象隊) * Komatsu Regional Air Police Squadron (小松地方警務隊) – responsible for criminal investigations of JASDF personnel in

Toyama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Toyama Prefecture has a population of 993,848 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,247.61 km2 (1,640.01 sq mi). Toyama Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the ...

and

Other facilities

*Komatsu Airport Office, Ōsaka Air Transportation Bureau. *Komatsu Office, Air Transportation Security Association. *Fire and Disaster Mitigation Office, Ishikawa Prefectural Government. **Equipped with

Bell 412 The Bell 412 is a utility helicopter of the Huey family manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It is a development of the Bell 212, with the major difference being the composite four-blade main rotor. It is a twin-turbine helicopter that has been ...

EP fire and disaster mitigation

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which Lift (force), lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning Helicopter rotor, rotors. This allows the helicopter to VTOL, take off and land vertically, to hover (helicopter), hover, and ...

"Hakusan". *Komatsu Operations Office,

Nakanihon Air Service Nakanihon Air Service is a general aviation company headquartered in Toyoyama, Nishikasugai District, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, by Nagoya Airfield near Nagoya. History In 1953, Nakanihon Air Service Co., Ltd. (中日本航空株式会社 ''Na ...

**A helicopter is based here.

Access

The airport is located near the

Hokuriku Expressway The , (abbreviated as , is a 4-laned national Expressways of Japan, expressway in Japan. It is owned and managed by East Nippon Expressway Company and Central Nippon Expressway Company. Overview The first section was opened in 1972 by Japan ...

. Scheduled bus service is available to

Kanazawa Station is a major railway station in Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West), the private railway operator Hokuriku Railroad, and the Public–private partnership#Japan, third-sector operator IR Ishikawa Railway. B ...

(40 minutes), Komatsu Station (15 minutes) and Fukui Station (1 hour).

References

External links

Komatsu Airport

Hokuriku International AirCargo Terminal

JASDF Komatsu Base

from

Japan Airlines Japan Airlines (JAL) is the flag carrier airline of Japan. JAL is headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport, Narita and Haneda Airport, Haneda airports, as well as secondary hubs in Osaka's Kansai ...

* * {{authority control Airports in Chūbu region Airports established in 1944 1944 establishments in Japan Japan Air Self-Defense Force bases Transport buildings and structures in Ishikawa Prefecture Komatsu, Ishikawa