Paphos International Airport (; ) is a joint civil-military public

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

located south-east of the city of

Paphos Paphos, also spelled as Pafos, is a coastal city in southwest Cyprus and the capital of Paphos District. In classical antiquity, two locations were called Paphos: #Old Paphos, Old Paphos, today known as Kouklia, and #New Paphos, New Paphos. It i ...

on the Mediterranean island of

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

. It is the country's second largest airport, after Larnaca International Airport. Paphos Airport is commonly used by tourists on vacation in western Cyprus, providing access to popular resorts such as Coral Bay,

Limassol Limassol, also known as Lemesos, is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the Limassol district. Limassol is the second-largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban population of 195,139 and a district population o ...

(about south-east), and Paphos itself.

History

The airport first opened in . In May

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, Hermes Airports Limited took over the construction, development, and operation of both

Larnaca Larnaca, also spelled Larnaka, is a city on the southeast coast of Cyprus and the capital of the Larnaca District, district of the same name. With a district population of 155.000 in 2021, it is the third largest city in the country after Nicosi ...

and Paphos airports for a period of 25 years. According to the airport operator, Paphos Airport served 1,744,011 passengers in 2007.Hermes Airports, ''Passenger traffic 2007'', 9 August 2008. A new passenger terminal opened at Paphos in November 2008. On 10 January 2012,

Ryanair Ryanair is an Irish Low-cost carrier#Ultra low-cost carrier, ultra low-cost airline group headquartered in Swords, County Dublin, Ireland. The parent company, Ryanair Holdings plc, includes subsidiaries Ryanair , Malta Air, Buzz (Ryanair), Buzz ...

announced they were to open their 50th base in Paphos. In April 2012, they allocated two aircraft in Paphos with 15 new routes, offering over 80 flights a week. Ryanair claim the reason they opened the base in Paphos was due to reduced landing charges offered by Hermes' incentive scheme, as well as the fact that they can easily operate within their standards (e.g., their typical 25 minutes

turnaround time Turnaround time (TAT) is the amount of time taken to complete a process or fulfill a request. The concept thus overlaps with lead time and can be contrasted with cycle time. Meaning in computing In computing, turnaround time is the total time ...

). A new four-lane road is being planned to link the airport and

, so passengers and staff can avoid using the B6 main road and the E603 secondary road which are often heavily congested.

Facilities

Paphos International Airport Check-in Hall

Passenger facilities include 28 check-in desks, one special baggage check-in, seven gates, 22 aircraft stands, a bank, restaurants, cafeterias, bars, a

duty-free shop A duty-free shop or store is a retail outlet whose goods are exempt from the payment of certain local or national taxes and duties, on the requirement that the goods will be sold to travelers who will take them out of the country, who will ...

, and a gift shop. Other facilities include a tourist help desk, car rental, first aid, a baby/parent room, and disabled access facilities. Refrigerated storage, health officials, and X-ray equipment are among some of the facilities provided for cargo. Furthermore, loading platforms and forklifts are also available.

Andreas Papandreou airbase

The airport is also an asset of the Cyprus National Guard, serving as a military air force base under the call sign 'Andreas Papandreou'. Located on the north-eastern part of the airport, it is considered the most south-eastern European air force base component of various EU air forces, as well as a safe base for humanitarian and emergency purposes for other countries.

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights to and from Paphos:

Statistics

Access

Bus

There is a regular bus service from Paphos Harbour station to the airport, limited services also run to / from Paphos Town (Karavella) and Polis. Direct buses to/from

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

and

are also available.

Car

The airport is located south-east of Paphos and west of Limassol.

Accidents and incidents

*On 21 September 2011, a

Thomson Airways Thomson may refer to: Names * Thomson (surname), a list of people with this name and a description of its origin * Thomson baronets, four baronetcies created for persons with the surname Thomson Businesses and organizations * SGS-Thomson ...

Boeing 737-800 The Boeing 737 Next Generation, commonly abbreviated as 737NG, or 737 Next Gen, is a twinjet, twin-engine narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Launched in 1993 as the third-generation derivative of the Boeing 737, it ha ...

inadvertently landed on the

taxiway A taxiway is a path for aircraft at an airport connecting runways with Airport apron, aprons, hangars, Airport terminal, terminals and other facilities. They mostly have a hard surface such as Asphalt concrete, asphalt or concrete, although sma ...

parallel to the runway (Taxiway Bravo, formerly Runway 11L/29R). No other aircraft was on the taxiway at the time, and the Thomson taxied safely to the

apron An apron is a garment worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body to protect from liquids. They have several purposes, most commonly as a functional accessory that protects clothes and skin from stains and marks. However, other typ ...

. A

NOTAM A NOTAM (ICAO & FAA: Notice to Airmen, CAA: Notice to Aviation or, for the FAA from 2021 to 2025, Notice to Air Missions) is a notice filed with an aviation authority to alert aircraft pilots of potential hazards along a flight route or at a loca ...

was published on 20 December 2011, warning pilots of the possibility of mistaking the runway with the parallel taxiway. An additional NOTAM was published on 14 August 2012, recommending pilots to confirm their alignment with the runway by using the ILS localiser when performing a

visual approach In aviation, a visual approach is an approach to a runway at an airport conducted under instrument flight rules (IFR) but where the pilot proceeds by visual reference and clear of clouds to the airport. The pilot must at all times have either th ...

to runway 29. By 2014, yellow 'TAXI' markings were painted across the width of the parallel taxiway near either longitudinal end, facing approaching aircraft; and a 'TAXIWAY' marking was painted at its junction with Taxiway Charlie (about midway), facing the latter.

References

External links

Official websiteExplore Luna Park Paphos
* * {{Authority control Airports in Cyprus Paphos 1982 establishments in Cyprus Airports established in 1982