Mihail Kogălniceanu International Airport

Mihail Kogălniceanu Airport (IATA: CND, ICAO: LRCK) is situated in southeastern Romania, in the commune of Mihail Kogălniceanu, 26 kilometres (16 mi) north-northwest of Constanța.[1] It is the main airport of the Northern Dobruja region and provides access to Constanța County, the Port of Constanța and the Black Sea resorts. The airport is named in honour of Mihail Kogălniceanu, the third Prime Minister of Romania.[4]

Constanța "Mihail Kogălniceanu" International Airport

Aeroportul Internaţional Constanța Mihail Kogălniceanu
Summary
Airport typePublic / Military
OperatorS. N. Aeroportul International Mihail Kogalniceanu Constanța S.A.
ServesConstanța
LocationMihail Kogălniceanu, Romania
OpenedMay 1960 (May 1960)
Hub forAir Connect
Elevation AMSL353 ft / 108 m
Coordinates44°21′44″N 028°29′18″E
Websitewww.mk-airport.ro
Map
CND is located in Romania
CND
CND
Location of airport in Romania
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
18/36 3,500 11,483 Concrete
Statistics (2018)
Passengers129,235
Aircraft movements (2017)6,478
Source: Romanian AIP at EUROCONTROL,[1] Statistics[2] airportaar.ro[3]

The military sector of the Mihail Kogălniceanu International Airport is currently home of the 57th Air Base. Since 1999 it has occasionally been used by the United States Air Force.[5]

History

Built in 1955 as a military airbase, Mihail Kogălniceanu Airport opened for civil operations in May 1960. It replaced the old Palas Airport (founded in 1932).[6][7]

A passenger terminal with a capacity of 200 passengers per hour was inaugurated in 1962. In 1967 the terminal expanded to a processing capacity of 300 pax/hour. In 1974 a major expansion increased the processing capacity to 1,000 pax/hour.[8]

Use of the airport peaked at 778,766 passengers in 1979, when foreign tourism to the Romanian Riviera was at a high.[9][10] Mihail Kogălniceanu International Airport handled 127,635 passengers in 2017.[2] That represented a 34.9% increase over the previous year.

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Constanța Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
AirConnect[11] Seasonal: Cluj-Napoca,[12] Timișoara[12]
Corendon Airlines Seasonal charter: Antalya[13]
HiSky Seasonal charter: Tel Aviv[14]
Turkish Airlines Istanbul
Wizz Air London–Luton

Statistics

The departures terminal
Annual passenger traffic at CND airport. See Wikidata query.

Traffic figures

Year Passengers Compared to Previous Year
2005 110,900 -
2006 71,236 Decrease 35.7%
2007 42,331 Decrease 40.5%
2008 60,477 Increase 42.8%
2009 68,690 Increase 13.5%
2010 74,587 Increase 8.5%
2011 73,713 Decrease 0.1%
2012 94,641 Increase 28.4%
2013 73,301 Decrease 22.5%
2014 37,939 Decrease 48.2%
2015 63,329 Increase 66.9%
2016 94,594 Increase 49.4%
2017 127,635 Increase 34.9%
2018 129,235 Increase 1.3%

Military usage

U.S. Air Force F-22A Raptor taxis on the flightline at Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base

The airport is home of the Romanian Air Force 57th Air Base, which was the only unit operating the Mikoyan MiG-29 fighter aircraft. The base was disbanded in April 2004. All the 18 MiG-29s remain in open storage at the airport. It has been used by the US Military since 1999.

It is currently home to the 572nd Helicopter Squadron which operates IAR 330Ls and also hosts the 861st Fighter Squadron of the 86th Air Base which operates MiG-21 LanceRs.[15]

Ground transportation

Bus

Several city bus lines link the airport to Constanța railway station. There are also a few private bus lines operating to downtown Constanța and to the Romanian Black Sea resorts. There is no shuttle service available.

Taxi

There are always cabs available outside airport terminal. The cost of a ride to Constanța is around US$30 which is considerably higher than the bus rates which can be as low as 3 lei/US$0,43.

Car

The Airport is easily accessible by car and is located in north-western part of Constanța, which can be accessed from the DN 2A/E60 Constanța-Hârșova or A4 motorway (Romania) until Ovidiu. The airport can also be reached from the A2 highway by exiting towards Cernavodă driving on DN22C towards Medgidia then through county road DJ 222 passing through Cuza Vodă all the way to the commune of Mihail Kogălniceanu where the airport is located.

Alternatively from the A2 highway there is another exit towards Medgidia on DJ381 and then continue on DJ222. Car rentals are also available. There is free short- and long-term parking right outside the airport terminal.

Accidents and incidents

  • On 12 June 2017, a MiG-21 LanceR of the Romanian Air Force crashed on approach, 8 km away from Mihail Kogălniceanu Airport. The pilot, though seriously injured, survived and the aircraft was written off.[16]

See also

Notes

References

Media related to Mihail Kogălniceanu International Airport at Wikimedia Commons

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