Düsseldorf International Airport
Encyclopedia
Düsseldorf International Airport is the largest airport in North Rhine-Westphalia
, Germany
, and the third largest airport in Germany, handling 18.99 million passengers in 2010.
Düsseldorf International is located in Düsseldorf
, the state
capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, approximately 7 km (4.3 mi) north of downtown Düsseldorf, and some 20 km (12.4 mi) south-west of Downtown Essen
. The airport is accessible via an extensive ground transportation infrastructure, including its own motorway-section - part of the Bundesautobahn 44
(which connects to Bundesautobahn 52
, 57
and 3) - and two railway stations - one of which for high-speed, long-distance trains. Düsseldorf SkyTrain operates as an inter-terminal people-mover within the airport.
The airport serves as an airline hub
for Air Berlin
and Lufthansa
, the airport's largest and second-largest airlines - both offering about 300 daily flights to 53 destinations. Turkish Airlines
is the largest foreign airline to operate from Düsseldorf International. The airport handles on average 750 takeoffs and landings per day with a total of 70 airlines offering flights to 186 non-stop-destinations.
Düsseldorf International Airport is the largest and primary airport for the Rhine-Ruhr
metropolitan region — the largest metropolitan region in Germany
and among the largest metropolitan areas of the world. The airport is located in Düsseldorf-Lohausen
. Largest nearby business centres are Düsseldorf
and Essen
; other cities within a 20 km radius are Duisburg
, Krefeld
, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Neuss
and Wuppertal
. The airport extends over a compact 6.13 km² (2.4 sq mi) of land - small in comparison to airports of a similar capacity - but also reason for Düsseldorf being known as an airport of short distances. The airport is workplace for more than 18,200 employees.
With 18.99 million passengers passing through in 2010, the airport was the third busiest in Germany, after Frankfurt Airport
and Munich Airport, and was the 20th busiest airport in Europe. Transfer passengers and those travelling on long-haul flights from the airport accounted for around 13% of all passengers in 2010. Düsseldorf International has two runways, which are 3,000 m and 2,700 m long. There are plans to extend the 3,000 m runway to 3,600 m, but up till now the town of Ratingen
is blocking them, as it lies within the approach path of the runway.
107 aircraft parking positions are available. The current terminal building is capable of handling up to 22 million passengers per year. However, due to an agreement with residents in nearby Ratingen (the so called Angerlandvergleich), this capacity may not be reached within the next few years, as aircraft movements are restricted. Düsseldorf International Airport is able to handle the new superjumbo Airbus A380
aircraft. On 12 November 2006, the first A380 landed in Düsseldorf as part of a Lufthansa promotion flight.
s within a single terminal building.
and Lufthansa Regional
, its airline partners (Air Malta
, Cimber Air
, Cirrus Airlines
) and Star Alliance members (Aegean Airlines
, Air China
, Austrian Airlines
, Croatia Airlines
, LOT Polish Airlines
, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Spanair
, EgyptAir
, TAP Air Portugal and Swiss International Airlines). Terminal A houses a Lufthansa Business Lounge and a Lufthansa Senator Lounge.
, KLM
, Finnair
, Iberia, Air France
and Czech Airlines
). Also located within the terminal are charter carriers such as TUIfly and Condor Flugdienst. Terminal B houses an observation deck and airline lounges by Air France and British Airways.
-flights by non-Star Alliance airlines. These are long-haul flights - among others - by Air Berlin, Delta Air Lines
, Emirates, Mahan Air
and Turkish Airlines
. Terminal C has a direct access to Airport City's maritim Hotel and houses lounges by airberlin and Emirates.
operates a small terminal, solely for private and corporate customers.
with an anticipated gross floor area of 250,000 m² to be completed by 2016. Already based at Düsseldorf Airport City are cooperate offices of Siemens and VDI, a large Porsche
centre and showroom, a maritim Hotel and Congress Centre, a Sheraton Hotel
and a cinema. Messe Düsseldorf
is situated in close proximity to Düsseldorf Airport City (some 500 m (1,640.4 ft)).
opened routes to Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and Geneva. With the start of the Second World War civil use of the airport ceased in September 1939 with the airfield being used by the military.
At the end of the war the airport reopened for civil use in 1948. With the area being under British administration the first flights were operated by British European Airways
to London Northolt
. In 1950 the main runway was extended to 2475 metres.
In 1964 planning began for the construction of a new terminal, with capacity for 1.4 million passengers, and in 1969 the main runway was lengthened to 3000 metres.
In 1973 the new central building and the Terminal B were opened and in 1975 the railroad connection between Düsseldorf central station and the airport started operation. Terminal A was opened in 1977.
In 1986 Terminal C was opened and 8.22 million passengers used the airport - making it number two in Germany. By 1992 when a second runway was built 12.3 million passengers were using the airport.
Fire caused by welding work and insufficient structural fire protection broke out on the roof of terminal A on 11 April 1996, and 17 people died, mostly due to smoke inhalation, with many more hospitalised. Damage to the airport was estimated to be in the hundreds of millions. At the time, the fire was the biggest public disaster in the history of North Rhine-Westphalia
. While repairs were ongoing, passengers were housed in big tents. In November Terminal C was completely redeveloped, with three lightweight construction halls serving as departure areas.
Also in 1997 construction began on the new inter-city railway station at the eastern edge of the airport. In 1998 the rebuilt Terminal A was reopened and the airport changed its name from "Rhine Ruhr airport" to "Düsseldorf International". Reconstruction of the central building and Terminal B began.
The first stage in the "Airport 2000+" programme commenced in 1999 with the laying of a foundation stone for a underground parking garage under the new terminal.
The new Düsseldorf Airport station was opened in May 2000, with the capacity of 300 train departures daily. Sixteen million passengers used the airport that year; Düsseldorf is now the third biggest airport in Germany. The new departures hall and Terminal B were opened in July 2001 after 2½ years of construction time; the rebuilt Gebäude Ost was reopened.
In 2002 the inter-terminal shuttle bus service was replaced by the suspended monorail
called the SkyTrain connecting the terminal building with the InterCity
train station. The monorail travels the 2.5 kilometres between the terminal and station at a maximum speed of 50 km/h. The system was developed by Siemens
and is based on the similar H-Bahn
operating with two lines on Dortmund
university campus.
The airport is connected to the Autobahn via the A44
. Two railway stations serve the airport. The Long distance station is located 2.5 km from the terminal and is serviced by all categories of German rail types, including ICE trains. A fully automatic, suspended monorail called SkyTrain connects the long distance station to the park houses and terminals. this service also connects the terminal to the outerlieing parking garages.
The airport also has its own S-Bahn
station, Düsseldorf Airport Terminal station
located below the terminal. It is serviced by the S11, which has its northern terminus there.
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and the third largest airport in Germany, handling 18.99 million passengers in 2010.
Düsseldorf International is located in Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
, the state
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, approximately 7 km (4.3 mi) north of downtown Düsseldorf, and some 20 km (12.4 mi) south-west of Downtown Essen
Essen
- Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of...
. The airport is accessible via an extensive ground transportation infrastructure, including its own motorway-section - part of the Bundesautobahn 44
Bundesautobahn 44
is a German Autobahn. It consists of three main-parts and a few smaller parts. It begins in Aachen at the German-Belgian border and ends near Kassel. Before the German unification it was an unimportant provincial-motorway but after this event it became an integral part of the German highway-system...
(which connects to Bundesautobahn 52
Bundesautobahn 52
is an autobahn in western Germany. It starts at the Dutch-German border near the community of Niederkrüchten, district of Viersen. From Elmpt it runs northeast....
, 57
Bundesautobahn 57
The Bundesautobahn 57 is a German Autobahn that begins at the Dutch-German border near Goch and ends in Köln. It runs parallel to the Rhine River. Neuss and Krefeld are the biggest cities at this motorway. The A 57 is continuation of the Dutch A77...
and 3) - and two railway stations - one of which for high-speed, long-distance trains. Düsseldorf SkyTrain operates as an inter-terminal people-mover within the airport.
The airport serves as an airline hub
Airline hub
An airline hub is an airport that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination. It is part of a hub and spoke model, where travelers moving between airports not served by direct flights change planes en route to their destinations...
for Air Berlin
Air Berlin
Air Berlin PLC & Co. Luftverkehrs KG is Germany's second largest airline, after Lufthansa, and Europe's sixth largest airline in terms of passengers....
and Lufthansa
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...
, the airport's largest and second-largest airlines - both offering about 300 daily flights to 53 destinations. Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey, headquartered in the Turkish Airlines General Management Building on the grounds of Atatürk Airport in Yeşilköy, Bakirköy district, Istanbul...
is the largest foreign airline to operate from Düsseldorf International. The airport handles on average 750 takeoffs and landings per day with a total of 70 airlines offering flights to 186 non-stop-destinations.
The airport
Rhine-Ruhr
The Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region is the largest metropolitan region in Germany with about 10,100,000 inhabitants. It is of polycentric nature and the only megacity in Germany. It covers an area of 7,110 square kilometers and lies entirely within the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia...
metropolitan region — the largest metropolitan region in Germany
Metropolitan regions in Germany
The Metropolitan regions in Germany are eleven densely populated areas in the Federal Republic of Germany. They comprise the major German cities and their surrounding catchment areas and form the political, commercial and cultural centers of the country...
and among the largest metropolitan areas of the world. The airport is located in Düsseldorf-Lohausen
Düsseldorf-Lohausen
Lohausen is an urban borough in the north of Düsseldorf, in neighbourhood to Stockum, Kaiserswerth, Unterrath, Wittlaer, the river Rhine and Ratingen. The airport of Düsseldorf is in Lohausen....
. Largest nearby business centres are Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
and Essen
Essen
- Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of...
; other cities within a 20 km radius are Duisburg
Duisburg
- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
, Krefeld
Krefeld
Krefeld , also known as Crefeld until 1929, is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, its centre lying just a few kilometres to the west of the River Rhine; the borough of Uerdingen is situated directly on the Rhine...
, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Neuss
Neuss
Neuss is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf. Neuss is the largest city within the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district and owes its prosperity to its location at the crossing of historic and modern trade routes. It is primarily known...
and Wuppertal
Wuppertal
Wuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in and around the Wupper river valley, and is situated east of the city of Düsseldorf and south of the Ruhr area. With a population of approximately 350,000, it is the largest city in the Bergisches Land...
. The airport extends over a compact 6.13 km² (2.4 sq mi) of land - small in comparison to airports of a similar capacity - but also reason for Düsseldorf being known as an airport of short distances. The airport is workplace for more than 18,200 employees.
With 18.99 million passengers passing through in 2010, the airport was the third busiest in Germany, after Frankfurt Airport
Frankfurt Airport
Frankfurt Airport may refer to:Airports of Frankfurt, Germany:*Frankfurt Airport , the largest airport in Germany*Frankfurt Egelsbach Airport, a general aviation airport*Frankfurt-Hahn Airport , a converted U.S...
and Munich Airport, and was the 20th busiest airport in Europe. Transfer passengers and those travelling on long-haul flights from the airport accounted for around 13% of all passengers in 2010. Düsseldorf International has two runways, which are 3,000 m and 2,700 m long. There are plans to extend the 3,000 m runway to 3,600 m, but up till now the town of Ratingen
Ratingen
Ratingen is a town in the district of Mettmann, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the northwestern part of Berg - about 12 km northeast of Düsseldorf...
is blocking them, as it lies within the approach path of the runway.
107 aircraft parking positions are available. The current terminal building is capable of handling up to 22 million passengers per year. However, due to an agreement with residents in nearby Ratingen (the so called Angerlandvergleich), this capacity may not be reached within the next few years, as aircraft movements are restricted. Düsseldorf International Airport is able to handle the new superjumbo Airbus A380
Airbus A380
The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine jet airliner manufactured by the European corporation Airbus, a subsidiary of EADS. It is the largest passenger airliner in the world. Due to its size, many airports had to modify and improve facilities to accommodate it...
aircraft. On 12 November 2006, the first A380 landed in Düsseldorf as part of a Lufthansa promotion flight.
Terminals
Düsseldorf International has three terminals connected by a central spine, even though the terminals are really more like concourseConcourse
A concourse is a place where pathways or roads meet, such as in a hotel, a convention center, a railway station, an airport terminal, a hall, or other space.-Examples:Examples of concourses include:* Meeting halls* Universities* Railway stations...
s within a single terminal building.
Terminal A
Terminal A was opened in 1977 and has 16 gates (A01-A16) used by LufthansaLufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...
and Lufthansa Regional
Lufthansa Regional
Lufthansa Regional is the regional airline alliance of the largest German airline, Lufthansa. It transports 10.5 million passengers a year, serving over 80 destinations and over 150 routes...
, its airline partners (Air Malta
Air Malta
Air Malta plc is the national airline of Malta, headquartered in Luqa. It operates services to 36 destinations in Europe, Middle East and North Africa. The airline's hub and base is at Malta International Airport.- History :...
, Cimber Air
Cimber Sterling
Cimber Sterling A/S, still known as Cimber Air and styled as Cimber Sterling, is a Danish airline based in Sønderborg, Sønderborg Municipality, Denmark, operating scheduled domestic and international services in co-operation with Scandinavian Airlines and Lufthansa...
, Cirrus Airlines
Cirrus Airlines
Cirrus Airlines Luftfahrtgesellschaft mbH is an airline based in Saarbrücken, Germany. It operates both charter and scheduled flights, the latter on behalf of Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines. Its main base and hub is Saarbrücken Airport, Germany....
) and Star Alliance members (Aegean Airlines
Aegean Airlines
Aegean Airlines S.A. is the largest Greek airline by total number of passengers carried. A Star Alliance member since June 2010, it operates scheduled and charter services from Athens and Thessaloniki to other major Greek destinations as well as to a number of European destinations...
, Air China
Air China
Air China is the flag carrier and one of the major airlines of the People's Republic of China. Based in Beijing Capital International Airport, Air China is the world's 10th largest airline by fleet size. The airline ranked behind its main competitors China Southern Airlines and China Eastern...
, Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines is the flag carrier airline of Austria, headquartered in Office Park 2 on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat, Wien-Umgebung and a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Together with regional subsidiary Tyrolean Airways and charter arm Lauda Air, it operates...
, Croatia Airlines
Croatia Airlines
Croatia Airlines d.d. is the national airline and flag carrier of the Republic of Croatia. Based in Buzin, Zagreb, the airline is a member of Star Alliance and operates domestic and international services. Its main base is Zagreb Airport, with focus cities being Dubrovnik and Split...
, LOT Polish Airlines
LOT Polish Airlines
Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT S.A. , trading as LOT Polish Airlines, is the flag carrier of Poland. Based in Warsaw, LOT was established in 1929, making it one of the world's oldest airlines still in operation. Using a fleet of 55 aircraft, LOT operates a complex network to 60 destinations in Europe,...
, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Spanair
Spanair
Spanair is a Spanish airline, with its head office in the Spanair Building in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, near Barcelona. It was, until 2009, a subsidiary of Scandinavian Airlines, which now holds slightly under 20% of the company. Spanair provides a scheduled passenger network within Spain and...
, EgyptAir
EgyptAir
EgyptAir is the flag carrier airline of Egypt and a member of Star Alliance. The airline is based at Cairo International Airport, its main hub, operating scheduled passenger and freight services to more than 75 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas...
, TAP Air Portugal and Swiss International Airlines). Terminal A houses a Lufthansa Business Lounge and a Lufthansa Senator Lounge.
Terminal B
Terminal B was opened in 1973 and has 11 gates (B01-B11) used mainly for domestic and EU-flights by Air Berlin and SkyTeam and Oneworld members (British AirwaysBritish Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
, KLM
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V., operating under the name KLM Royal Dutch Airlines , is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands and is part of Air France-KLM...
, Finnair
Finnair
Finnair Plc is the flag carrier and largest airline of Finland, with its headquarters on the grounds of Helsinki Airport in Vantaa, Finland, and its main hub at Helsinki Airport. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both the domestic and international air travel markets in Finland. The largest...
, Iberia, Air France
Air France
Air France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...
and Czech Airlines
Czech Airlines
Czech Airlines j.s.c. , trading as Czech Airlines , is the national airline of the Czech Republic and temporary in Slovakia with its head office on the grounds of Ruzyně Airport in Ruzyně, Prague...
). Also located within the terminal are charter carriers such as TUIfly and Condor Flugdienst. Terminal B houses an observation deck and airline lounges by Air France and British Airways.
Terminal C
Terminal C was opened in 1986 and has 8 gates (C01-C08) used exclusively for non-SchengenSchengen
Schengen may refer to:* Schengen Agreement, a European treaty that provided for the removal of border controls between participating countries* Schengen Area, the group of European countries that have abolished border controls between each other...
-flights by non-Star Alliance airlines. These are long-haul flights - among others - by Air Berlin, Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
, Emirates, Mahan Air
Mahan Air
Mahan Airlines, doing business as Mahan Air, is a private airline based in the Mahan Air Tower in Tehran, Iran. It operates scheduled domestic services and international flights to the Far East, Middle East, Central Asia, and Europe...
and Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey, headquartered in the Turkish Airlines General Management Building on the grounds of Atatürk Airport in Yeşilköy, Bakirköy district, Istanbul...
. Terminal C has a direct access to Airport City's maritim Hotel and houses lounges by airberlin and Emirates.
Executive Terminal
Jet AviationJet Aviation
Jet Aviation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics , was founded in Switzerland in 1967 and is one of the leading business aviation services companies in the world. Close to 5,000 employees cater to client needs from 26 airport facilities throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North...
operates a small terminal, solely for private and corporate customers.
Airport City
Since 2003, an 23 hectare large area south-west of the airport terminal is under redevelopment as Düsseldorf Airport CityAirport City
Airport city is a term for an "inside the fence" airport area including the airport and on-airport businesses such as air cargo, logistics, offices, retail, and hotels...
with an anticipated gross floor area of 250,000 m² to be completed by 2016. Already based at Düsseldorf Airport City are cooperate offices of Siemens and VDI, a large Porsche
Porsche
Porsche Automobil Holding SE, usually shortened to Porsche SE a Societas Europaea or European Public Company, is a German based holding company with investments in the automotive industry....
centre and showroom, a maritim Hotel and Congress Centre, a Sheraton Hotel
Sheraton Düsseldorf Airport Hotel
Sheraton Düsseldorf Airport is a 4-Star Sheraton Hotel in Düsseldorf, Germany, located at Düsseldorf International Airport.- External links :*...
and a cinema. Messe Düsseldorf
Messe Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf Messe is a trade fair ground and organizer, based in Düsseldorf, Germany. With a workforce of 1,459 employees worldwide and a total exhibition space of 285,000 sqm in Düsseldorf, the company is one of the largest in the industry...
is situated in close proximity to Düsseldorf Airport City (some 500 m (1,640.4 ft)).
Ownership
Düsseldorf International is a public–private partnership with the following owners:- 50% Landeshauptstadt (state capital) DüsseldorfDüsseldorfDüsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
- 50% Airport Partners GmbH (Ownership of Airport Partners GmbH: 40% Hochtief AirPort GmbH, 20% Hochtief AirPort Capital KGaA, 40% Dublin Airport AuthorityDublin Airport AuthorityDublin Airport Authority plc is the state-owned airport authority in the Republic of Ireland. With a head office on the grounds of Dublin Airport in Fingal, County Dublin, the authority also owned the Great Southern Hotels which had nine sites throughout the island of Ireland and international...
plc (through its wholly owned subsidiary Aer Rianta InternationalAer Rianta InternationalAer Rianta International cpt is an airport and retail holding and management company, registered in Dublin and with its head office on the grounds of Shannon Airport in Shannon, County Clare. Aer Rianta is a subsidiary of Ireland's state-owned Dublin Airport Authority.The company was established...
cpt))
History
The first aviation event in the area was the landing of Zeppelin LZ3 on 19 September 1909 about 3 km (1.9 mi) south of the present airport. The present airport was opened on 19 April 1927, after two years of construction. Deutsche Luft HansaDeutsche Luft Hansa
Deutsche Luft Hansa A.G. was a German airline, serving as flag carrier of the country during the later years of the Weimar Republic and throughout the Third Reich.-1920s:Deutsche Luft Hansa was founded on 6 January 1926 in Berlin...
opened routes to Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and Geneva. With the start of the Second World War civil use of the airport ceased in September 1939 with the airfield being used by the military.
At the end of the war the airport reopened for civil use in 1948. With the area being under British administration the first flights were operated by British European Airways
British European Airways
British European Airways or British European Airways Corporation was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974. The airline operated European and North African routes from airports around the United Kingdom...
to London Northolt
RAF Northolt
RAF Northolt is a Royal Air Force station situated in South Ruislip, east by northeast of Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. Approximately north of London Heathrow Airport, the station also handles a large number of private civil flights...
. In 1950 the main runway was extended to 2475 metres.
In 1964 planning began for the construction of a new terminal, with capacity for 1.4 million passengers, and in 1969 the main runway was lengthened to 3000 metres.
In 1973 the new central building and the Terminal B were opened and in 1975 the railroad connection between Düsseldorf central station and the airport started operation. Terminal A was opened in 1977.
In 1986 Terminal C was opened and 8.22 million passengers used the airport - making it number two in Germany. By 1992 when a second runway was built 12.3 million passengers were using the airport.
Fire caused by welding work and insufficient structural fire protection broke out on the roof of terminal A on 11 April 1996, and 17 people died, mostly due to smoke inhalation, with many more hospitalised. Damage to the airport was estimated to be in the hundreds of millions. At the time, the fire was the biggest public disaster in the history of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
. While repairs were ongoing, passengers were housed in big tents. In November Terminal C was completely redeveloped, with three lightweight construction halls serving as departure areas.
Also in 1997 construction began on the new inter-city railway station at the eastern edge of the airport. In 1998 the rebuilt Terminal A was reopened and the airport changed its name from "Rhine Ruhr airport" to "Düsseldorf International". Reconstruction of the central building and Terminal B began.
The first stage in the "Airport 2000+" programme commenced in 1999 with the laying of a foundation stone for a underground parking garage under the new terminal.
The new Düsseldorf Airport station was opened in May 2000, with the capacity of 300 train departures daily. Sixteen million passengers used the airport that year; Düsseldorf is now the third biggest airport in Germany. The new departures hall and Terminal B were opened in July 2001 after 2½ years of construction time; the rebuilt Gebäude Ost was reopened.
In 2002 the inter-terminal shuttle bus service was replaced by the suspended monorail
Monorail
A monorail is a rail-based transportation system based on a single rail, which acts as its sole support and its guideway. The term is also used variously to describe the beam of the system, or the vehicles traveling on such a beam or track...
called the SkyTrain connecting the terminal building with the InterCity
InterCity
InterCity is the classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe...
train station. The monorail travels the 2.5 kilometres between the terminal and station at a maximum speed of 50 km/h. The system was developed by Siemens
Siemens
Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...
and is based on the similar H-Bahn
H-Bahn
The H-Bahn in Dortmund and Düsseldorf is a suspended, driverless passenger monorail system. The system has been developed by Siemens, who call the project SIPEM ....
operating with two lines on Dortmund
Dortmund
Dortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union....
university campus.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger numbers
| Number of Movements | Freight (Tonnes) |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 16,03 million | 194,016 | 59,361 | |
| 2001 | 15,40 million | 193,514 | 51,441 | |
| 2002 | 14,75 million | 190,300 | 46,085 | |
| 2003 | 14,30 million | 186,159 | 48,419 | |
| 2004 | 15,26 million | 200,584 | 86,267 | |
| 2005 | 15,51 million | 200,619 | 88,058 | |
| 2006 | 16,59 million | 215,481 | 97,000 | |
| 2007 | 17,83 million | 227,899 | 89,281 | |
| 2008 | 18,15 million | 228,531 | 90,100 | |
| 2009 | 17,79 million | 214,024 | 76,916 | |
| 2010 | 18,98 million | 215,540 | 87,995 | |
| Source: ADV German Airports Association | ||||
Busiest routes
| Rank | City | Passengers | Top Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Munich, Germany |
1,532,121 | Air Berlin, Lufthansa |
| 2 | Berlin-Tegel |
930,315 | Air Berlin, Eurowings, Lufthansa, Lufthansa CityLine |
| 3 |  Palma de Mallorca, SpainPalma de Mallorca Airport Palma de Mallorca Airport is an airport located east of Palma, Majorca, adjacent to the village of Can Pastilla. Also known as Son Sant Joan Airport or Aeroport de Son Sant Joan, it is the third largest airport in Spain, after Madrid's Barajas Airport and Barcelona Airport... |
899,499 | Air Berlin, Condor, Lufthansa, TUIfly |
| 4 | London (all), United Kingdom | 812,334 | Air Berlin, British Airways, EasyJet, Lufthansa |
| 5 |  Antalya, TurkeyAntalya Airport Antalya Airport is northeast of the city center of Antalya, Turkey. The airport is operated in Turkey's primary holiday destination located on the country's Mediterranean coast. The airport is big and modern, built to accommodate the millions of passengers who come to Turkey's Mediterranean... |
691,381 | Air Berlin, Condor, Germania, German Sky Airlines, Lufthansa, Pegasus Airlines, Sky Airlines, SunExpress, TUIfly, XL Airways Germany |
Ground transportation
Bundesautobahn 44
is a German Autobahn. It consists of three main-parts and a few smaller parts. It begins in Aachen at the German-Belgian border and ends near Kassel. Before the German unification it was an unimportant provincial-motorway but after this event it became an integral part of the German highway-system...
. Two railway stations serve the airport. The Long distance station is located 2.5 km from the terminal and is serviced by all categories of German rail types, including ICE trains. A fully automatic, suspended monorail called SkyTrain connects the long distance station to the park houses and terminals. this service also connects the terminal to the outerlieing parking garages.
The airport also has its own S-Bahn
S-Bahn
S-Bahn refers to an often combined city center and suburban railway system metro in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Denmark...
station, Düsseldorf Airport Terminal station
Düsseldorf Airport Terminal station
Düsseldorf Airport Terminal is an underground station on the Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn at the end of the Düsseldorf-Unterrath–Düsseldorf Airport Terminal railway, situated underneath Terminal C of Düsseldorf International Airport, Düsseldorf in western Germany. It is served by the S11 line...
located below the terminal. It is serviced by the S11, which has its northern terminus there.
Airline lounges
- Terminal A: Lufthansa Business Lounge & Lufthansa Senator Lounge
- Terminal B: Air France Lounge, British Airways Terrace Lounge, Hugo Junkers Lounge (general)
- Terminal C: airberlin Lounge, Emirates Lounge, Open Sky Lounge
Airport magazine
Das Magazin is a magazine available for visitors and passengers travelling through Düsseldorf airport. It contains information about new airlines serving Düsseldorf, new destinations and routes, and other information about the airport itself and surrounding facilities. Das Magazin is available at many shops and newsstands at the airport for free or via a paid subscription.See also
- Cologne Bonn AirportCologne Bonn AirportCologne/Bonn Airport is an international airport located in the district of Porz in the city of Cologne, Germany, and is surrounded by the Wahner Heide nature reserve. The airport is centrally located in the Cologne/Bonn Region southeast of Cologne city centre and northeast of Bonn...
, an airport 45 km (28 mi) south from Düsseldorf, between the cities of CologneCologneCologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
and BonnBonnBonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999.... - Dortmund AirportDortmund AirportDortmund Airport , is the international airport located east of Dortmund, Germany. Its slogan is Näher als man denkt . Since 2006 it has been carrying the name "Dortmund Airport 21", in reference to the fact that Dortmund's utility company, DSW21, is its major shareholder...
, an airport 50 km (31 mi) north-east from Düsseldorf, near the city of DortmundDortmundDortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union.... - Weeze Airport, an airport 80 km (50 mi) north-west from Düsseldorf, that is advertised by budget airlines as "Airport Düsseldorf Weeze", or "Airport Düsseldorf Niederrhein". A German court ruled the naming the airport after Düsseldorf would be misleading to passengers, however some budget airlines still use that name in advertisements outside of Germany.
- Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn, commuter rail service within the Rhine-RuhrRhine-RuhrThe Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region is the largest metropolitan region in Germany with about 10,100,000 inhabitants. It is of polycentric nature and the only megacity in Germany. It covers an area of 7,110 square kilometers and lies entirely within the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia...
region - List of the busiest airports in Europe, based on annual passenger traffic