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Stuttgart Airport () formerly 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 ...
serving
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...
, the capital of the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
of
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
. It is christened in honor of Stuttgart's former mayor, Manfred Rommel, son of
Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...
, and is the sixth busiest airport in Germany with 11,832,634 passengers having passed through its doors in 2018. The facility covers approximately 400
hectares The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. A ...
(1,000
acres The acre ( ) is a unit of land area used in the British imperial and the United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, ...
), of which 190 hectares are green space. The airport is operated by Flughafen Stuttgart GmbH (FSG). It goes back to Luftverkehr Württemberg AG, which was founded in 1924 and initially operated Böblingen Airport. Since 2008, 65% of the operating company is owned by the state of Baden-Württemberg and 35% by the city of Stuttgart. It is located approximately ( in a straight line) south of Stuttgart and lies on the boundary between the nearby town of Leinfelden-Echterdingen,
Filderstadt Filderstadt (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Fildorsdadd'') is a town in the Esslingen (district), district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is located approximately 13 km south of Stuttgart. Filderstadt is located n ...
and Stuttgart itself. In 2007, the Messe Stuttgart convention center – the ninth biggest
exhibition centre A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
in Germany – moved to grounds directly next to the airport. Additionally, the global headquarters for
car park A parking lot or car park (British English), also known as a car lot, is a cleared area intended for parking vehicles. The term usually refers to an area dedicated only for parking, with a durable or semi-durable surface. In most jurisdic ...
ing company APCOA Parking are located here.


History


Early years and World War II

The airport was built in 1939 to replace Böblingen Airport. In 1945, the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
took over the airport until returning it to German authorities in 1948. For the duration of the Cold War the runway and facilities were shared with the United States Army who operated helicopters, the Grumman OV-1 Mohawk and other fixed wing aircraft as ''Echterdingen Army Airfield'' on the southern portion of the airfield. Some of the units operating at Echterdingen were headquartered at nearby Nellingen Kaserne- now closed and redeveloped. In 1984–5, the 223rd Aviation Battalion (Combat) of the 11th Aviation Group (Combat) was headquartered at Echterdingen, with three aviation companies assigned (one at
Schwäbisch Hall Schwäbisch Hall (; 'Swabian Hall'; from 1802 until 1934 and colloquially: ''Hall'') is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg located in the valley of the Kocher river, the longest tributary (together with its headwater Lein) of the N ...
). The U.S. Army still maintains a small helicopter base - ''Stuttgart Army Airfield'' - on the southern side of the airport, which it shares with the Baden-Württemberg Police helicopter wing. The police helicopter wing falls under the control of Stuttgart Police Department and has six modern helicopters based at Stuttgart and two in
Söllingen Söllingen is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the Helmstedt (district), district of Helmstedt, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The Municipality Söllingen includes the villages of Dobbeln, Söllingen and Wobeck. And since 1 November 2016, ...
.


The airport in the 1950s-1990s

The airport was expanded after
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 ...
. The runway was extended to in 1948, then to in 1961 and finally to in 1996. Renovation was scheduled for 2020, full closure phase was preponed to be completed in April during the corona lockdown. The original 1938 terminal was finally replaced in 2004 and there are now four terminals with a maximum capacity of approximately 12 million passengers. Politicians, town planners and nearby residents have been arguing for years about the construction of a second runway. However, on 25 June 2008, Minister-President
Günther Oettinger Günther Hermann Oettinger (born 15 October 1953) is a German lawyer and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as European Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources from 2017 to 2019, as European Commissioner for Digi ...
announced that for the next 8–12 years no second runway will be built and that the restrictions for night operations stay in place.


Development since 2010

After the death of former mayor Manfred Rommel in November 2013 local politicians proposed renaming the airport after him. This proposal caused public disputes as he was the son of
Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...
but also highly respected for his work on intercultural affairs. In July 2014, it has been announced that the airport will be named ''Flughafen Stuttgart - Manfred Rommel Flughafen'' from now on. In September 2016, the airport unveiled new branding and corporate design, changing its official name from ''Flughafen Stuttgart'' to ''Stuttgart Airport''. In September 2014,
United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...
cancelled their route to Stuttgart from Newark due to insufficient demand leaving Stuttgart Airport with only one remaining long-haul connection to
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
provided by
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, operating nine hubs, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being its ...
. In October 2014,
easyJet EasyJet plc (styled as easyJet) is a British multinational low-cost airline group headquartered at London Luton Airport. It operates domestic and international scheduled services on 927 routes in more than 34 countries via its affiliate airlin ...
announced they would serve Stuttgart as their seventh German destination by March 2015. In December 2014,
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 ...
also added Stuttgart as a destination in their network with six weekly flights to
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
from April 2015.
Air Berlin Air Berlin plc & Co. Luftverkehrs KG (), branded as airberlin or airberlin.com, was a major German airline. At its peak, it was Germany's second-largest airline after Lufthansa, as well as Europe's tenth-largest airline in terms of passengers c ...
announced the start of a service to
Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
from December 2014. On 31 May 2016, Air Berlin ceased its flights to
Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
.airberlingroup.com - airberlin withdraws from Stuttgart - Abu Dhabi route
18 March 2016
In October 2016, Air Berlin announced it would close its maintenance facilities at the airport due to cost cutting and restructuring measures.
(German) 14 October 2016
In July 2020, Lauda announced the closure of their base at Stuttgart Airport – which has been operated as a
wetlease Aircraft leases are leases used by airlines and other aircraft operators. Airlines lease aircraft from other airlines or leasing companies for two main reasons: to operate aircraft without the financial burden of buying them, as well as to provide ...
for
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 ...
— by October 2020. Prior to this announcement, the base staff rejected a new labour agreement. In August 2024,
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, operating nine hubs, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being its ...
announced the end of their flights to Stuttgart from
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
after already having reduced their service to a seasonal one in March 2023. This marked the end of the connection after 36 years (with a three-year hiatus from 2020 to 2023 due to COVID-19) and will deprive the airport of any scheduled long-haul destinations.


Terminals

Stuttgart Airport consists of four passenger terminals which have separate check-in facilities and entrances but are directly connected to each other and share a single airside area which features eight
jet bridge A jet bridge is an enclosed connector which most commonly extends from an airport terminal gate to an airplane, and in some instances from a port to a boat or ship, allowing passengers to board and disembark without heading outside and being exp ...
s as well as about two dozen bus-boarding stands. * Terminal 1 is the first of two landside main halls and features together with its addition Terminal 1-West 50 check-in counters. It shares the roof with Terminals 2 and 3 and is mainly used by
Eurowings Eurowings GmbH is a Germany, German low-cost carrier headquartered in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. Founded in 1996, it serves a network of domestic and European destinations and main ...
and Turkish Airlines. * Terminal 2 is a small area featuring nine check-in counters and a security checkpoint. It is located within the shopping area between the main halls of Terminals 1 and 3. It is used by
Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), trading as the Lufthansa Group, is a German aviation group. Its major and founding subsidiary airline Lufthansa German Airlines, branded as Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. It ranks List of largest airlin ...
&
Star Alliance Star Alliance is an airline alliance headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. Founded on 14 May 1997, it was the world's first global airline alliance. Star Alliance has 25 member airlines that operate a combined fleet of over 5,000 aircraft, servi ...
partners in addition to their counters in Terminal 1. * Terminal 3 is the second of the two landside main halls east of Terminal 1 and 2 and features 39 additional check-in counters. It is used by TUIfly and
KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, or simply KLM (an abbreviation for their official name Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. , ),
among several other airlines. * Terminal 4 is, unlike the other three terminals, a separate and very basic equipped building to the east of Terminals 1 to 3 but also connected to them by a walk way. It features 17 more check-in counters as well as several bus-boarding gates and is used mostly for holiday charter operations. In March 2018, the airport administration announced that Terminal 4 will be entirely rebuilt and expanded in the coming years.


Airlines and destinations


Passenger

The following airlines offer regular scheduled and charter flights at Stuttgart Airport:


Cargo


Statistics


Passengers and movements

''Source: Stuttgart Airport''


Largest airlines


Busiest routes


Ground transportation


Car

There are two major highways: Just north of the airport runs the
Bundesautobahn 8 is an autobahn in southern Germany that runs 497 km (309 mi) from the Luxembourg A13 motorway at Schengen via Neunkirchen, Pirmasens, Karlsruhe, Pforzheim, Stuttgart, Ulm, Augsburg and Munich to the Austrian West Autobahn near S ...
(A8), which connects the cities of Karlsruhe and Stuttgart to Ulm, Augsburg and Munich. The Bundesstraße 27 (B27) leads to downtown Stuttgart, as well as to Tübingen and Reutlingen in the South.


Coach

From the regional cities of
Esslingen am Neckar Esslingen am Neckar (Swabian German, Swabian: ''Esslenga am Neckor''; until 16 October 1964 officially '' Eßlingen am Neckar'') is a town in the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany, seat of the Esslingen (district), Distri ...
,
Reutlingen Reutlingen (; ) is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the capital of the eponymous Reutlingen (district), district of Reutlingen. As of June 2018, it had an estimated population of 116,456. Reutlingen has a Reutlingen University, univ ...
,
Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...
and Kirchheim exists a connection by coach. Additionally, German long-distance coach operators ''DeinBus'' and
Flixbus FlixBus (; styled FLiXBUS) is a German brand that offers low-cost Intercity bus service, intercity coach services in Europe, North America, South America and Asia. It is owned by , which also operates FlixTrain, FlixCar, , and Greyhound Lines. F ...
maintain their stop for Stuttgart on the airport grounds with direct connections to several major cities.


Suburban railway

Stuttgart Airport can be easily reached within 30 minutes from the city's main railway station using the Stuttgart suburban railway S2 or S3 from Stuttgart Flughafen/Messe station.


Future long-distance railway

It is planned to connect the airport with the future Stuttgart - Ulm high-speed railway line currently under construction as part of the major
Stuttgart 21 Stuttgart 21 is a railway and urban development project in Stuttgart, Germany. It is a part of the Stuttgart–Augsburg new and upgraded railway and the Main Line for Europe (Paris—Vienna) within the framework of the Trans-European Networks ...
railway redevelopment program. Therefore, a new long-distance train station will be built on the airport's grounds near the existing suburban railway station. The new station, which will be served by ''ICE'' high-speed trains will be connected to the new line by an underground loop track. The Stuttgart-Ulm line is scheduled to be opened in 2020. As of 2019, the airport connection is planned to commence operation in late 2025, versus an initial estimate of 2019 (made in 2010).


Accidents and incidents

* On 19 January 2010, Bin Air Swearingen SA-227-C Metro D-CKPP was damaged when the right main undercarriage collapsed on landing.


See also

* Transport in Germany *
List of airports in Germany This is a list of airports in Germany, sorted by location. List Airport names shown in bold indicate the facility has scheduled passenger service on a commercial airline. See also * List of airports by ICAO code: E#ED ET - Germany * List ...


References


External links


Official website
* *

{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Stuttgart Transport in Stuttgart Gerkan, Marg and Partners buildings Airports in Baden-Württemberg