Mariupol International Airport (, ) , previously known as Zhdanov Airport, is the currently closed main

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 ...

of the large, industrial city and port of

Mariupol Mariupol is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius, Kalmius River. Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it was the tenth-largest city in the coun ...

and is located 5 km from the city. The airport is situated in the extreme south-eastern part of

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

near the border with

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. The airport had domestic, international and charter flights. The airport is a Class "B" airfield suitable for the operation of aircraft of all types (categories A, B, C, D, and E). There have been no regular flights since 2009, and the airport has been closed since 19 June 2014, because of the war in the Donbas region.

History

The airport's history began in 1930 when project Mariupol Airport started (officially named Zhdanov Airport �данов Аеропортat the time of construction because the city was named Zhdanov until 1989). The first flight was made on a

Putilov Stal-3 The Stal-3 (''Stal'' – steel) was a transport aircraft designed and built in the USSR from 1933. Development The Stal-3 was an enlarged development of the Putilov Stal-2, designed at the OOS (''Otdel Opytnogo Samolyetostroeniya'' - section fo ...

from Mariupol to

Berdyansk Berdiansk or Berdyansk (, ; , ) is a port city in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, south-eastern Ukraine. It is on the northern coast of the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Berdiansk Raion. The ...

in the spring of 1931. However, due to economic problems, the airport was inactive until the autumn of 1932 and did not establish regular flights before the beginning of

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 ...

. In 1967, the airport underwent new constructions with the runway and the airport terminal. In its heyday (during the

Soviet Era The history of the Soviet Union (USSR) (1922–91) began with the ideals of the Russian Bolshevik Revolution and ended in dissolution amidst economic collapse and political disintegration. Established in 1922 following the Russian Civil War, ...

), the airport transported up to 120,000 passengers a year. There were 30 to 40 flights a day, and during the summer the airport served up to 25,000 passengers per month. However, after the

collapse of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Declaration No. 142-Н of ...

, and the fall of

Aeroflot PJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines (, ), commonly known as Aeroflot ( or ; , , ), is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Russia. Aeroflot is headquartered in the Central Administrative Okrug, Moscow, with its hub being Sheremetyevo Interna ...

(the airport's primary airline), airline service and passenger travel declined and the airport became inactive. Until 1993, the airport was a member of the Donetsk United Squadron, and on 26 May 1993, Mariupol Airport was registered as a

state enterprise A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a business entity created or owned by a national or local government, either through an executive order or legislation. SOEs aim to generate profit for the government, prevent private sector monopolies, provide goo ...

. Construction of a new terminal building which could handle 200+ passengers per hour was launched in February 2003. Also, a new

ramp An inclined plane, also known as a ramp, is a flat supporting surface tilted at an angle from the vertical direction, with one end higher than the other, used as an aid for raising or lowering a load. The inclined plane is one of the six clas ...

was constructed, and the

runway In aviation, a runway is an elongated, rectangular surface designed for the landing and takeoff of an aircraft. Runways may be a human-made surface (often asphalt concrete, asphalt, concrete, or a mixture of both) or a natural surface (sod, ...

underwent minor repairs with installation of ILS on Runway 20. In 2004, the airport transported over 11,000 passengers. In 2006, 18,000 passengers were transported, and in 2007 more than 20,000. On 26 May 2004, the airport received the status of

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 ...

, and on 7 November 2005, the

State Aviation Administration of Ukraine The State Aviation Administration of Ukraine () is an agency of the Ukrainian government under the Ministry of Infrastructure responsible for civil aviation. The head office is in Kyiv (14 Peremogy Avenue, Kyiv, 01135, Ukraine).airlines An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in ...

passengers A passenger is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The vehicles may be bicycles, ...

, and

air cargo Air cargo is any property carried or to be carried in an aircraft. Air cargo comprises air freight, air express and airmail. Aircraft types Different cargo can be transported by passenger, cargo or combi aircraft: * Passenger aircraft use the ...

. The airport was closed in June 2014, when Mariupol was engulfed in a fierce fighting between the Ukrainian army and the pro-Russian separatists. The airport was taken over by Russian forces on March 18, 2022.

Terminal

The terminal includes two departure and arrival lounges along with a

baggage claim 200px, Baggage carousel In airport terminals, a baggage reclaim area is an area where arriving passengers claim checked-in baggage after disembarking from an airline flight. The alternative term baggage claim is used at airports in the US and ...

area which services both domestic and international flights. Airport has a VIP lounge for passengers traveling in

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

first First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

class. Terminal is also outfitted with

gift A gift or present is an item given to someone (who is not already the owner) without the expectation of payment or anything in return. Although gift-giving might involve an expectation of reciprocity, a gift is intended to be free. In many cou ...

and food stalls, a

cafe A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargil ...

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

, and

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for Wireless LAN, local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by ...

. Between 1968 and 1970 the artist

Victor Arnautoff Victor Mikhail Arnautoff (November 11, 1896 – March 22, 1979) was a Russian-American painter and professor of art. He worked in San Francisco and the Bay Area from 1925 to 1963, including two decades as a teacher at Stanford University, and was ...

decorated the airport terminal with mosaic friezes. 450px 450px

Incidents and accidents

*On 30 March 1977, an

Yakovlev 40 The Yakovlev Yak-40 (; NATO reporting name: Codling) is a regional jet designed in Soviet Union by Yakovlev. The trijet's maiden flight was in 1966, and it was in production from 1967 to 1981. It was introduced to service in 1968, with export mo ...

(CCCP-87738) flight from

Dnipropetrovsk Dnipro is Ukraine's fourth-largest city, with about one million inhabitants. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, southeast of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the Dnieper River, Dnipro River, from which it takes its name. Dnipro is t ...

was approaching airport visually in

fog Fog is a visible aerosol consisting of tiny water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. Reprint from Fog can be considered a type of low-lying cloud usually resembling stratus and is heavily influenc ...

. The crew continued their visual approach even after entering an area of fog with visibility less than and losing sight of the ground. When deciding to

go around In aviation, a go-around is an aborted landing of an aircraft that is on Final_approach_(aeronautics), final approach or has already touched down. A go-around can either be initiated by the pilot flying or requested by air traffic control for var ...

, the right wing hit a pole at a height of . The wing caught fire, and the number 2 engine failed. With a progressive roll the aircraft flew at an angle of 40-45 degrees until the right wing touched the ground. The

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...

hit the ground sideways in a field about from the runway. The airplane broke up and caught fire. There were 8 fatalities (4 of them were crew) out of 27 occupants. The aircraft was written off (damaged beyond repair). Incident of CCCR-87738
- Retrieved on October 17, 2011.

References

External links

Official website
(down) {{authority control 1931 establishments in Ukraine 2014 disestablishments in Ukraine Airports established in 1931 Airports disestablished in 2014 Airports built in the Soviet Union Defunct airports in Ukraine Transport in Mariupol Buildings and structures in Mariupol Buildings and structures in Donetsk Oblast

History

Terminal

Incidents and accidents

See also

References

External links