Frankfurt International Airport
Encyclopedia
Frankfurt am Main Airport , or simply Frankfurt Airport, known in German
as Flughafen Frankfurt am Main or Rhein-Main-Flughafen, is a major international airport
located in Frankfurt
, Germany
, 12 km (7.5 mi) southwest of the city centre
.
Run by transport company Fraport
, Frankfurt Airport is by far the busiest airport by passenger traffic in Germany, the third busiest in Europe (after London Heathrow Airport
and Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport) and the ninth busiest worldwide
in 2010. Passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport in 2010 was 53.0 million. As of summer 2011, Frankfurt Airport serves the most international destinations in the world, serving 298 destinations in 110 countries and is the second busiest airport in Europe by cargo traffic
. The southern side of the airport ground was home to the Rhein-Main Air Base
, which was a major air base for the United States
from 1947 until 2005, when the air base was closed and the property was acquired by Fraport.
The airport is centrally located in the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region, Germany's second-largest metropolitan region
, which itself has a central location in the densely populated region of the west-central European megalopolis
. Thereby, along with a strong rail and motorway
connection, the airport serves as a major transportation hub to the greater region, less than two hours by ground to Cologne
, the Ruhr Area
, and Stuttgart
.
Frankfurt Airport is the main hub
of Lufthansa
, Germany's flag carrier
, and of Condor Flugdienst. Due to capacity constraints in Frankfurt, Lufthansa has established a secondary hub at Munich Airport, where many key medium and long-haul routes are available.
The airport is currently ranked as a four-star by Skytrax
along with eight other airports around the world.
The airport has been expanded several times since its opening in 1936 and now has two large terminals (Terminal 1 and Terminal 2), with a capacity of approximately 58 million passengers yearly, and four runways. In recent years, major construction works were necessary to make the airport compatible for the Airbus A380
, including a large A380 maintenance facility, because Lufthansa has stationed its A380 aircraft fleet at Frankfurt Airport. On October 20, 2011, the fourth runway went into operation, which will allow the airport to meet the predicted demand of about 700,000 aircraft movements in 2020. To handle the predicted passenger amount of about 90 million in 2020, Fraport currently builds a new terminal section at Terminal 1 for additional six million passengers and a large Terminal 3 for 25 million passengers is scheduled to be built beginning in 2013.
). DELAG then built the first airport in Frankfurt, called Airship Base at Rebstock, which was located in Bockenheim
in the western part of the city and was primarily used for airship
s in the beginning. It opened in 1912 and was extended after World War I
, but in 1924 an expert's report already questioned the possibility of further expansions at this location. With the foundation of Lufthansa
in 1926 a rapid boom of civilian air travel started and soon the airship base became too small to handle the demand. Plans for a new and larger airport located in the Frankfurt City Forest
south-west of Schwanheim
were approved in 1930, but were not realized due to the Great Depression
. After the so-called „Machtergreifung
“ in 1933 the Nazi regime
revived the plans and started the construction of the new airport.
The Frankfurt Rhein-Main Airport and Airship Base was officially opened on July 8, 1936. In the following years it became the second-largest airport in Germany (after Berlin Tempelhof Airport) and was home for the two largest German Zeppelin
s, LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin
and LZ 129 Hindenburg
. It was planned to make Frankfurt the most important destination for Zeppelins in Germany, but after the catastrophic crash of the Hindenburg
in Lakehurst on May 6, 1937, the airship era came to an abrupt end.
World War II
After the beginning of World War II
in 1939 all foreign airline
s left the airport and control of air traffic was transferred to German Luftwaffe. On May 9, 1940, the first bomber
s took-off to attack France
. From August to November 1944 a concentration camp was established in Walldorf
, close to the airport ground, where Jewish female prisoners were forced to work for the airport. The Allies of World War II
destroyed the runway system with airstrike
s in 1944 and the Wehrmacht
blew up buildings and fuel depots in 1945, shortly before the US Army took control of the airport on March 25, 1945. After the German Instrument of Surrender the war in Europe ended and the US Army started to build a new temporary runway at Frankfurt Airport. The southern part of the airport ground was occupied to build the Rhein-Main Air Base
as an Air Force Base
for the United States Air Forces in Europe
.
Berlin Airlift
In 1948 the Soviet Union
blocked the Western Allies' railway and road access to the sectors of West Berlin
under Allied control. Their aim was to force the western powers to allow the Soviet zone to start supplying Berlin with food and fuel, thereby giving the Soviets practical control over the entire city. In response, the Western Allies organized the Berlin Airlift to carry supplies via air to the people in West Berlin. The airports in Frankfurt, Hamburg
and Hannover were the primary bases for the allied airplanes. The heavy use of these so-called „Raisin Bombers
“ caused damages to the runway in Frankfurt and forced the US Army to build a second parallel runway. The airlift ended in September 1949 after the Soviet Union had ended their blockade.
Airport growth
In 1951 restrictions for German air travellers were lifted and the civil air traffic started to grow again: In 1952 Frankfurt Airport handled more than 400.000 passengers, a year later it was more than half a million. About 100 to 120 planes started and landed in Frankfurt per day. In 1955 Lufthansa finally recommenced their flights to and from Frankfurt and in the same year the Federal Republic of Germany gained their air sovereignty
back from the Allies. In 1957 the northern runway was extended, first to 3.000 meters, then up to 3.900 meters, to make it compatible for jet aircraft
s.
The airport did not emerge as a major international airline hub
until 1958 when a new passenger terminal called Empfangsanlage Ost (Terminal East, literally: „Arrival Facility East“) opened in the north-east corner of the airport ground. Only four years later it was clear that the terminal was yet too small for the demand: In 1961 Frankfurt already had 2.2 million passengers and 81.000 starts and landings, making it the second busiest airport in Europe behind London Heathrow Airport
.
In 1962 it was decided to build an even larger terminal with a capacity for 30 million passengers per year. The works on this terminal began in 1965. The southern runway was extended to 3.750 meters in 1964. In 1970 a new airplane hangar was inaugurated: It accommodated for six jet airplanes and was the world's largest airplane hangar by that time.
Terminal Mitte
The new terminal, called Terminal Mitte (Central Terminal), today known as Terminal 1, divided into three concourses (A, B and C) with 56 gates, and an electric operated baggage handling system
, was opened to the public on March 14, 1972. It was assumed that the terminal capacity would be sufficient for nearly 30 years to come. Along with the new terminal a train station (Frankfurt Airport station) opened at the airport, which was the first airport train station in the Federal Republic of Germany. A few days later the old Empfangsanlage Ost was closed.
Third runway
Planning for a third runway (called Startbahn 18 West) began in 1973. This project spawned massive protests by residents and environmentalists. The main points of conflict were increasing noises and pollution and the cutting down of protected trees in the Frankfurt City Forest
. While the protests and related lawsuits were unsuccessful in preventing the construction of the runway, the Startbahn West protests were one of the major crystallization points for the German environmental movement
of the 1980s. The protests even continued after the runway had been opened in 1984 and in 1987 two police officers were killed by a gunman. This incident ended the Startbahn West protests for good. Because of its location in north-south-direction, in contrast to the other two runways in east-west-direction, the use of the third runway is limited: The Startbahn West can only be used for takeoff
s in the southward direction because otherwise it would interfere with the air traffic at the other runways.
Terminal 2
In 1990 the works on a new terminal (Terminal 2) began because it was foreseeable that Terminal Mitte would reach its capacity limit sooner than expected. The new terminal, divided into concourses D and E, was built in the east of the existing terminal where once the Empfangsanlage Ost had been. With the opening in 1994 Frankfurt Airport had pushed up its terminal capacity to 54 million passengers per year. Along with the terminal opening, a people mover
system called Sky Line was established to provide a fast connection between Terminal 2 and Terminal Mitte (now renamed Terminal 1).
Second train station
In 1999 a second train station, primarily for InterCityExpress
long-distance trains (called Frankfurt Airport long-distance station), opened near Terminal 1 as part of the new Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed rail line. At the same time local and regional trains were centered at the existing underground train station, now renamed Frankfurt Airport Regional station.
Closing of the Rhein-Main Air Base
On December 31, 2005, the Rhein-Main Air Base
in the southern part of the airport ground was closed and the US Air Force
moved to Ramstein Air Base
. The property was handed back to Fraport which allows the airport to use it to build a new passenger terminal. The property of the housing area for the soldiers, called Gateway Gardens, which was located north-east of the airport ground, was given back to the city of Frankfurt in the same year and will be developed as a business district in the following years.
Airbus A380
From 2005 to 2007 a large Airbus A380
maintenance facility was built at Frankfurt Airport because Lufthansa wanted to station their future A380-aircraft-fleet here. Due to economic reasons only half of the facility has been built so far. Both terminals also underwent major renovations in order to handle the A380, including the installation of a third boarding bridge at several gates. Lufthansa's first Airbus A380 went into operation in June 2010 and was baptised Frankfurt am Main.
The Squaire
In 2011 a large office building called The Squaire (a portmanteau of square and air) opened at Frankfurt Airport. It was built on top of the Airport long-distance station and is considered the largest office building in Germany with 140000 m² (1,506,947.5 sq ft) floor area. Main tenants are KPMG
and two Hilton Hotels
.
Fourth runway
Plans to build a fourth runway at Frankfurt Airport had been under-way since 1997 but due to the violent conflicts with the building of the third runway, Fraport let residents groups and environmentalists participate in the process to find an agreeable solution. In 2000 a task force presented their conclusion which generally approved a new runway, but in shorter length (only 2.800 metres compared to the other three 4.000 metres long runways) which would serve as a landing-only runway for smaller aircraft. Additional requirements included improved noise protection arrangements and a strict ban on night flights between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. across the whole airport. In 2001 Fraport applied for an approval to build a new runway, with three possible variants assessed. This concluded that a runway north-west of the airport ground would deliver the fewest adverse effects for local residents and the surrounding environment. The plans were approved by the Hessian government in December 2007, but the requested ban on night flights was lifted because it was argued that an international airport like Frankfurt would need night flights, especially for worldwide freight transport. Construction of the new 2,800 meters (9,240 feet) long Runway Northwest in the Kelsterbach Forest began in early 2009.
The runway officially went into operation on October 20, 2011, with an aircraft carrying Chancellor
Angela Merkel
performing the first landing on October 21.
The centre line separation from the existing north runway is about 1,400 meters (4,620 feet). This will allow for simultaneous instrument landing system (ILS) operations on these two runways, which has not been possible on the existing parallel runways because they do not meet the 3,500 foot requirement for ILS operations. This will enable the airport to increase its capacity from the current 83 to 126 aircraft movements per hour.
Preliminary ban on night flights
On October 11, 2011, the Hessian Administration Court ruled that night flights are no longer allowed at Frankfurt Airport after the inauguration of the new runway, and therefore overrode the approval from the Hessian government from 2007 which allowed 17 scheduled flights per night. A definitive ruling concerning night flights at Frankfurt Airport will be made by the German Administrative Court, but not before 2012.
To handle the predicted passenger amount of 90 million in 2020, Fraport is currently building a new terminal section at Terminal 1. Also, a new Terminal 3 is scheduled to be built south of the existing terminals beginning in 2013.
Terminal 1 expansion
A new pier, called A-Plus, is currently under construction and scheduled to open in 2012. The pier will operate flights to non-Schengen
destinations and will be used exclusively by Lufthansa
. It will be compatible with Airbus A380
operations and should increase the passenger capacity by six million.
Terminal 3
Fraport
also plans to build a large new terminal south of the existing terminals at the ground of the former Rhein-Main Air Base
. The new Terminal 3 should be able to house up to 25 million passengers and will feature 75 new aircraft positions. An extension of the people mover
system SkyLine is planned to transport people to Terminal 1, the airport train stations and Terminal 2.
Frankfurt Airport has several structures for passenger, cargo and general aviation operations.
The terminal is functionally divided into three levels, the departure level in the upper deck with check-in counters, the arrival level with´baggage claim areas at ground level and, underneath, a distribution level with access to the (regional) train station and underground and multilevel parking. Departure and arrivals levels each have separate street approaches. A bus station is located at arrivals level. Parallel to the terminal, on the other side of the street, are a hotel and an office building ("FAC" = Frankfurt Airport Centre). The three-level underground parking garages are beneath those buildings. The tracks of the train station run between the terminal itself and the range of office and hotel buildings.
The landside of Terminal 1 is 420 meters long. Horizontally, it is divided into three areas (Concourses A, B and C).
A satellite view of Terminal 1 shows it to have 54 gates equipped with jetways (25 in Concourse A, 18 in Concourse B, 11 in Concourse C). Frankfurt Airport's official website shows a total of 103 gates (a figure which includes "stand" gates, which are gates with no jetways).
Lufthansa
and its Star Alliance
partners currently dominate Terminal 1.
has a separate First Class Terminal at Frankfurt Airport (50.049166 N,8.565856 E) for the use of its first class
passengers. The terminal can only be used by passengers flying Lufthansa First Class or Lufthansa's Miles & More HON Circle members. They also must be departing on a flight operated by Air Dolomiti, Austrian Airlines Group, Lufthansa, Lufthansa Regional or SWISS. Passengers flying other Star Alliance partners in First Class do not have access to the First Class Terminal. The terminal has 200 staff and is used by about 300 passengers daily. It provides individualised security screening and customs facilities, valet parking
, a white-linen restaurant, a cigar
room and bubble baths. Passengers clear exit immigration controls in the terminal and then are driven from the terminal directly to their aircraft by a chaffeured Mercedes-Benz S-Class
or Porsche Panamera
. The commercial success of the FCT at Frankfurt has led Lufthansa to plan the opening of a similar facility at Munich Airport.
Lufthansa
:
Singapore Airlines
:
Korean Air
:
hotel with more than 1,000 rooms is adjacent to Terminal 1. Terminal 1 also has a full-service German Post Office and a DHL office open to the public.
Fraport
's facilities are on the property of Frankfurt Airport. Its head office building is by Gate 3. As of 2010 Fraport
's new headquarters, located by Gate 3, are under construction. The building is scheduled to open in 2012. The Fraport Driving School (Fraport Fahrschule) is in Building 501 of CargoCity South (CargoCity Süd).
Lufthansa Cargo
is headquartered in Building 451 of the Frankfurt Airport area. Lufthansa operates the Lufthansa Aviation Center (LAC) at Frankfurt Airport. Several company departments, including Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, and Media Relations, are based out of the LAC.
Airmail Center Frankfurt, a joint venture of Lufthansa Cargo, Fraport, and Deutsche Post
, has its head office in Building 189, between Terminals 1 and 2.
Frankfurt Airport Regional station at Terminal 1 provides access to the S-Bahn
commuter rail lines S8 and S9 which depart every 15 minutes during the day to Wiesbaden
in the west via Rüsselsheim
and Mainz
and to Hanau
in the east via Frankfurt Central Station
, Frankfurt city centre and Offenbach am Main. The journey time to Frankfurt Central Station is 11 minutes, to the city centre (Hauptwache
) 15 minutes. The first S-Bahn trains arrive at 4:28h from Frankfurt and Hanau, and at 4:29h from Mainz and Wiesbaden; the last ones depart at 1:32h to Frankfurt, at 0:29h to Wiesbaden and at 0:59h to Rüsselsheim.
Regional-Express trains to other destinations like Saarbrücken
in the west, Koblenz
in the Rhine valley to the north, or Würzburg
in the east also call at the Regional Railway Station, as do some long distance trains, especially at night when the Long Distance Railway Station is closed.
Frankfurt Airport long-distance station was opened in 1999. It is the end point of the newly-built Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed rail line, which links southern Germany to the Rhine-Ruhr
metropolitan area, the Netherlands
and Belgium
via Cologne
at speeds up to 300 km/h (186.4 mph). All ICE trains between Cologne and southern Germany stop at Frankfurt Airport, taking slightly less than an hour from Cologne. About 10 trains per hour depart in all directions.
The station is squeezed in between the A3 and the four-lane Bundesstraße B43, linked to Terminal 1 by a building that bridges the Autobahn. Railway passengers can check in right at the train station for about 60 airlines.
Deutsche Bahn
operates the AIRail Service
in conjunction with Lufthansa
, American Airlines
and Emirates. The service operates to the central stations of Bonn
, Cologne
, Düsseldorf
, Freiburg
, Karlsruhe
, Leipzig
, Hamburg
, Hannover
, Mannheim
, Munich
, Nuremberg
, Stuttgart
and to Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe.
Various transport companies provide bus services to the airport.
and directly connected to an Autobahn intersection called Frankfurter Kreuz
where the A3 and A5
meet. It takes a 10–15 minutes by car or taxi to get to Frankfurt Central Station or the city centre.
Passengers driving their owns cars can park in multilevel parking garages (mostly underground) along the terminals. A long term holiday parking lot is located south of the runways and connected by shuttle bus to the terminals.
at Rhein-Main Air Base, a Canadian RCAF
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter crashed into a nearby road, hitting a car and killing all passengers, a vicar's family of five. The pilot was able to eject.
In 1988 the first leg of Pan Am Flight 103
(a Boeing 727) took off from Frankfurt. About half of the passengers and baggage were from other flights and had changed planes to Flight 103 (a Boeing 747) at Heathrow Airport to continue to New York. A bomb exploded on the aircraft above the Scottish town of Lockerbie
, killing all the passengers on board. The bomb is believed to have been planted by Libya
n terrorists.
In September 2007, German
authorities arrested three suspected Islamic terrorists for plotting a "massive" terror attack, which posed "an imminent threat" to Frankfurt Airport and the US Air Force base in Ramstein
.
On 2 March 2011, a gunman opened fire
on a bus carrying US Air Force personnel at Frankfurt Airport, killing two and wounding two others.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
as Flughafen Frankfurt am Main or Rhein-Main-Flughafen, is a major international airport
International airport
An international airport is any airport that can accommodate flights from other countries and are typically equipped with customs and immigration facilities to handle these flights to and from other countries...
located in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, 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...
, 12 km (7.5 mi) southwest of the city centre
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
.
Run by transport company Fraport
Fraport
Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide is a German transport company which operates the Frankfurt International Airport serving Frankfurt am Main and holds interests in the operation of several other airports around the world. In the past the firm also managed the smaller Frankfurt-Hahn...
, Frankfurt Airport is by far the busiest airport by passenger traffic in Germany, the third busiest in Europe (after London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
and Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport) and the ninth busiest worldwide
World's busiest airports by passenger traffic
The world's busiest airports by passenger traffic are measured by number of total passengers . One passenger is described as someone who arrives in, departs from, or transfers through the airport on a given day...
in 2010. Passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport in 2010 was 53.0 million. As of summer 2011, Frankfurt Airport serves the most international destinations in the world, serving 298 destinations in 110 countries and is the second busiest airport in Europe by cargo traffic
World's busiest airports by cargo traffic
The world's thirty busiest airports by cargo traffic for various periods . Numbers listed refer to loaded and unloaded freight in metric tonnes.-2010 final statistics:...
. The southern side of the airport ground was home to the Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....
, which was a major air base for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from 1947 until 2005, when the air base was closed and the property was acquired by Fraport.
The airport is centrally located in the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region, Germany's second-largest metropolitan region
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...
, which itself has a central location in the densely populated region of the west-central European megalopolis
Blue Banana
The Blue Banana is a discontinuous corridor of urbanisation in Western Europe, with a population of around 110 million. It stretches approximately from North West England in the north to Milan in the south...
. Thereby, along with a strong rail and motorway
German Autobahnen
The German autobahns are the nationally coordinated motorway system in Germany. In German, they are officially called Bundesautobahn , which translates as federal expressways...
connection, the airport serves as a major transportation hub to the greater region, less than two hours by ground to Cologne
Cologne
Cologne 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...
, the Ruhr Area
Ruhr Area
The Ruhr, by German-speaking geographers and historians more accurately called Ruhr district or Ruhr region , is an urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With 4435 km² and a population of some 5.2 million , it is the largest urban agglomeration in Germany...
, and Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
.
Frankfurt Airport is the main 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...
of 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...
, Germany's flag carrier
Flag carrier
A flag carrier is a transportation company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given country, enjoys preferential rights or privileges, accorded by the government, for international operations. It may be a state-run, state-owned or private but...
, and of Condor Flugdienst. Due to capacity constraints in Frankfurt, Lufthansa has established a secondary hub at Munich Airport, where many key medium and long-haul routes are available.
The airport is currently ranked as a four-star by Skytrax
Skytrax
Skytrax is a United Kingdom-based consultancy, the public face of Inflight Research Services, which has the largest airline and airport review and ranking site. It conducts research for commercial airlines...
along with eight other airports around the world.
The airport has been expanded several times since its opening in 1936 and now has two large terminals (Terminal 1 and Terminal 2), with a capacity of approximately 58 million passengers yearly, and four runways. In recent years, major construction works were necessary to make the airport compatible for the 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...
, including a large A380 maintenance facility, because Lufthansa has stationed its A380 aircraft fleet at Frankfurt Airport. On October 20, 2011, the fourth runway went into operation, which will allow the airport to meet the predicted demand of about 700,000 aircraft movements in 2020. To handle the predicted passenger amount of about 90 million in 2020, Fraport currently builds a new terminal section at Terminal 1 for additional six million passengers and a large Terminal 3 for 25 million passengers is scheduled to be built beginning in 2013.
First Airport
On November 16, 1909, the world's first airline was founded in Frankfurt: The Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktiengesellschaft (DELAGDELAG
DELAG, an acronym from was the world's first airline to use an aircraft in revenue service. It was founded on November 16, 1909 with government assistance, and operated airships manufactured by Zeppelin Corporation...
). DELAG then built the first airport in Frankfurt, called Airship Base at Rebstock, which was located in Bockenheim
Bockenheim (Frankfurt am Main)
Bockenheim is a district or Stadtteil of Frankfurt am Main, Hessen, Germany. It is part of the Ortsbezirk Innenstadt II, and is subdivided into 7 Stadtbezirke. It is in the west-central part of the city and covers an area of 540.1 ha...
in the western part of the city and was primarily used for airship
Airship
An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
s in the beginning. It opened in 1912 and was extended after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, but in 1924 an expert's report already questioned the possibility of further expansions at this location. With the foundation of 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...
in 1926 a rapid boom of civilian air travel started and soon the airship base became too small to handle the demand. Plans for a new and larger airport located in the Frankfurt City Forest
Frankfurt City Forest
The Frankfurt City Forest or Frankfurter Stadtwald is a forest district in the south of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. There are also other forest areas spread out through the city.-Basic Facts:...
south-west of Schwanheim
Schwanheim (Frankfurt am Main)
Schwanheim is a district or Stadtteil of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It is part of the Ortsbezirk West, and is subdivided into the Stadtbezirke Schwanheim, Goldstein-Ost and Goldstein-West....
were approved in 1930, but were not realized due to the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. After the so-called „Machtergreifung
Machtergreifung
Machtergreifung is a German word meaning "seizure of power". It is normally used specifically to refer to the Nazi takeover of power in the democratic Weimar Republic on 30 January 1933, the day Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of Germany, turning it into the Nazi German dictatorship.-Term:The...
“ in 1933 the Nazi regime
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
revived the plans and started the construction of the new airport.
Second Airport
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
s, LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin
LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin
LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin was a German built and operated passenger-carrying hydrogen-filled rigid airship which operated commercially from 1928 to 1937. It was named after the German pioneer of airships, Ferdinand von Zeppelin, who was a Graf or Count in the German nobility. During its operating life,...
and LZ 129 Hindenburg
LZ 129 Hindenburg
LZ 129 Hindenburg was a large German commercial passenger-carrying rigid airship, the lead ship of the Hindenburg class, the longest class of flying machine and the largest airship by envelope volume...
. It was planned to make Frankfurt the most important destination for Zeppelins in Germany, but after the catastrophic crash of the Hindenburg
Hindenburg disaster
The Hindenburg disaster took place on Thursday, May 6, 1937, as the German passenger airship LZ 129 Hindenburg caught fire and was destroyed during its attempt to dock with its mooring mast at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station, which is located adjacent to the borough of Lakehurst, New Jersey...
in Lakehurst on May 6, 1937, the airship era came to an abrupt end.
World War II
After the beginning of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1939 all foreign airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
s left the airport and control of air traffic was transferred to German Luftwaffe. On May 9, 1940, the first bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s took-off to attack France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. From August to November 1944 a concentration camp was established in Walldorf
Mörfelden-Walldorf
Mörfelden-Walldorf is a town in the Groß-Gerau district, situated in the Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region in Hessen, Germany.- Location :Mörfelden-Walldorf is situated within a triangle formed by the South Hessian cities of Frankfurt am Main, Darmstadt and Wiesbaden, near Frankfurt International...
, close to the airport ground, where Jewish female prisoners were forced to work for the airport. The Allies of World War II
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
destroyed the runway system with airstrike
Airstrike
An air strike is an attack on a specific objective by military aircraft during an offensive mission. Air strikes are commonly delivered from aircraft such as fighters, bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters, and others...
s in 1944 and the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
blew up buildings and fuel depots in 1945, shortly before the US Army took control of the airport on March 25, 1945. After the German Instrument of Surrender the war in Europe ended and the US Army started to build a new temporary runway at Frankfurt Airport. The southern part of the airport ground was occupied to build the Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....
as an Air Force Base
Air Force Base
An Air Force Base is a military airbase of any of a number of air forces, such as the United States Air Force or South African Air Force ....
for the United States Air Forces in Europe
United States Air Forces in Europe
The United States Air Forces in Europe is the United States Air Force component of U.S. European Command, a Department of Defense unified command, and is one of two Air Force Major Commands outside of the continental United States, the other being the Pacific Air Forces...
.
Berlin Airlift
In 1948 the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
blocked the Western Allies' railway and road access to the sectors of West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
under Allied control. Their aim was to force the western powers to allow the Soviet zone to start supplying Berlin with food and fuel, thereby giving the Soviets practical control over the entire city. In response, the Western Allies organized the Berlin Airlift to carry supplies via air to the people in West Berlin. The airports in Frankfurt, Hamburg
Hamburg Airport
Hamburg Airport , also known as Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel Airport , is an international airport serving Hamburg, Germany.It originally covered . Since then, the site has grown more than tenfold to . The main apron covers . The airport is north of the centre of the city of Hamburg in the Fuhlsbüttel...
and Hannover were the primary bases for the allied airplanes. The heavy use of these so-called „Raisin Bombers
Raisin bombers
Raisin Bombers was the name Berliners gave to the transport aircraft of the Western Allies, which brought in supplies to the western half of the city of Berlin during the Berlin Blockade in 1949....
“ caused damages to the runway in Frankfurt and forced the US Army to build a second parallel runway. The airlift ended in September 1949 after the Soviet Union had ended their blockade.
Airport growth
In 1951 restrictions for German air travellers were lifted and the civil air traffic started to grow again: In 1952 Frankfurt Airport handled more than 400.000 passengers, a year later it was more than half a million. About 100 to 120 planes started and landed in Frankfurt per day. In 1955 Lufthansa finally recommenced their flights to and from Frankfurt and in the same year the Federal Republic of Germany gained their air sovereignty
Air sovereignty
Air sovereignty follows from state sovereignty and describes the fundamental right of a sovereign state to regulate the use of its airspace on its own Air sovereignty follows from state sovereignty and describes the fundamental right of a sovereign state to regulate the use of its airspace on its...
back from the Allies. In 1957 the northern runway was extended, first to 3.000 meters, then up to 3.900 meters, to make it compatible for jet aircraft
Jet aircraft
A jet aircraft is an aircraft propelled by jet engines. Jet aircraft generally fly much faster than propeller-powered aircraft and at higher altitudes – as high as . At these altitudes, jet engines achieve maximum efficiency over long distances. The engines in propeller-powered aircraft...
s.
The airport did not emerge as a major international 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...
until 1958 when a new passenger terminal called Empfangsanlage Ost (Terminal East, literally: „Arrival Facility East“) opened in the north-east corner of the airport ground. Only four years later it was clear that the terminal was yet too small for the demand: In 1961 Frankfurt already had 2.2 million passengers and 81.000 starts and landings, making it the second busiest airport in Europe behind London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
.
In 1962 it was decided to build an even larger terminal with a capacity for 30 million passengers per year. The works on this terminal began in 1965. The southern runway was extended to 3.750 meters in 1964. In 1970 a new airplane hangar was inaugurated: It accommodated for six jet airplanes and was the world's largest airplane hangar by that time.
Terminal Mitte
The new terminal, called Terminal Mitte (Central Terminal), today known as Terminal 1, divided into three concourses (A, B and C) with 56 gates, and an electric operated baggage handling system
Baggage Handling System
A baggage handling system is a type of conveyor system installed in airports that transports checked luggage from ticket counters to areas where the bags can be loaded onto airplanes...
, was opened to the public on March 14, 1972. It was assumed that the terminal capacity would be sufficient for nearly 30 years to come. Along with the new terminal a train station (Frankfurt Airport station) opened at the airport, which was the first airport train station in the Federal Republic of Germany. A few days later the old Empfangsanlage Ost was closed.
Third runway
Planning for a third runway (called Startbahn 18 West) began in 1973. This project spawned massive protests by residents and environmentalists. The main points of conflict were increasing noises and pollution and the cutting down of protected trees in the Frankfurt City Forest
Frankfurt City Forest
The Frankfurt City Forest or Frankfurter Stadtwald is a forest district in the south of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. There are also other forest areas spread out through the city.-Basic Facts:...
. While the protests and related lawsuits were unsuccessful in preventing the construction of the runway, the Startbahn West protests were one of the major crystallization points for the German environmental movement
Environmental movement
The environmental movement, a term that includes the conservation and green politics, is a diverse scientific, social, and political movement for addressing environmental issues....
of the 1980s. The protests even continued after the runway had been opened in 1984 and in 1987 two police officers were killed by a gunman. This incident ended the Startbahn West protests for good. Because of its location in north-south-direction, in contrast to the other two runways in east-west-direction, the use of the third runway is limited: The Startbahn West can only be used for takeoff
Takeoff
Takeoff is the phase of flight in which an aerospace vehicle goes from the ground to flying in the air.For horizontal takeoff aircraft this usually involves starting with a transition from moving along the ground on a runway. For balloons, helicopters and some specialized fixed-wing aircraft , no...
s in the southward direction because otherwise it would interfere with the air traffic at the other runways.
Terminal 2
In 1990 the works on a new terminal (Terminal 2) began because it was foreseeable that Terminal Mitte would reach its capacity limit sooner than expected. The new terminal, divided into concourses D and E, was built in the east of the existing terminal where once the Empfangsanlage Ost had been. With the opening in 1994 Frankfurt Airport had pushed up its terminal capacity to 54 million passengers per year. Along with the terminal opening, a people mover
People mover
A people mover or automated people mover is a fully automated, grade-separated mass transit system.The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks, but is sometimes applied to considerably more complex automated...
system called Sky Line was established to provide a fast connection between Terminal 2 and Terminal Mitte (now renamed Terminal 1).
Second train station
In 1999 a second train station, primarily for InterCityExpress
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
long-distance trains (called Frankfurt Airport long-distance station), opened near Terminal 1 as part of the new Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed rail line. At the same time local and regional trains were centered at the existing underground train station, now renamed Frankfurt Airport Regional station.
Closing of the Rhein-Main Air Base
On December 31, 2005, the Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....
in the southern part of the airport ground was closed and the US Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
moved to Ramstein Air Base
Ramstein Air Base
Ramstein Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the German state of Rheinland-Pfalz. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe and is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation...
. The property was handed back to Fraport which allows the airport to use it to build a new passenger terminal. The property of the housing area for the soldiers, called Gateway Gardens, which was located north-east of the airport ground, was given back to the city of Frankfurt in the same year and will be developed as a business district in the following years.
Airbus A380
From 2005 to 2007 a large 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...
maintenance facility was built at Frankfurt Airport because Lufthansa wanted to station their future A380-aircraft-fleet here. Due to economic reasons only half of the facility has been built so far. Both terminals also underwent major renovations in order to handle the A380, including the installation of a third boarding bridge at several gates. Lufthansa's first Airbus A380 went into operation in June 2010 and was baptised Frankfurt am Main.
The Squaire
In 2011 a large office building called The Squaire (a portmanteau of square and air) opened at Frankfurt Airport. It was built on top of the Airport long-distance station and is considered the largest office building in Germany with 140000 m² (1,506,947.5 sq ft) floor area. Main tenants are KPMG
KPMG
KPMG is one of the largest professional services networks in the world and one of the Big Four auditors, along with Deloitte, Ernst & Young and PwC. Its global headquarters is located in Amstelveen, Netherlands....
and two Hilton Hotels
Hilton Hotels & Resorts
Hilton Hotels & Resorts is an international chain of full-service hotels and resorts founded by Conrad Hilton and now owned by Hilton Worldwide. Hilton hotels are either owned by, managed by, or franchised to independent operators by Hilton Worldwide. Hilton Hotels became the first coast-to-coast...
.
Fourth runway
Plans to build a fourth runway at Frankfurt Airport had been under-way since 1997 but due to the violent conflicts with the building of the third runway, Fraport let residents groups and environmentalists participate in the process to find an agreeable solution. In 2000 a task force presented their conclusion which generally approved a new runway, but in shorter length (only 2.800 metres compared to the other three 4.000 metres long runways) which would serve as a landing-only runway for smaller aircraft. Additional requirements included improved noise protection arrangements and a strict ban on night flights between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. across the whole airport. In 2001 Fraport applied for an approval to build a new runway, with three possible variants assessed. This concluded that a runway north-west of the airport ground would deliver the fewest adverse effects for local residents and the surrounding environment. The plans were approved by the Hessian government in December 2007, but the requested ban on night flights was lifted because it was argued that an international airport like Frankfurt would need night flights, especially for worldwide freight transport. Construction of the new 2,800 meters (9,240 feet) long Runway Northwest in the Kelsterbach Forest began in early 2009.
The runway officially went into operation on October 20, 2011, with an aircraft carrying Chancellor
Chancellor of Germany
The Chancellor of Germany is, under the German 1949 constitution, the head of government of Germany...
Angela Merkel
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000, and chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary coalition from 2002 to 2005.From 2005 to 2009 she led a...
performing the first landing on October 21.
The centre line separation from the existing north runway is about 1,400 meters (4,620 feet). This will allow for simultaneous instrument landing system (ILS) operations on these two runways, which has not been possible on the existing parallel runways because they do not meet the 3,500 foot requirement for ILS operations. This will enable the airport to increase its capacity from the current 83 to 126 aircraft movements per hour.
Preliminary ban on night flights
On October 11, 2011, the Hessian Administration Court ruled that night flights are no longer allowed at Frankfurt Airport after the inauguration of the new runway, and therefore overrode the approval from the Hessian government from 2007 which allowed 17 scheduled flights per night. A definitive ruling concerning night flights at Frankfurt Airport will be made by the German Administrative Court, but not before 2012.
Future expansions
With the inauguration of the fourth runway in October 2011, the airport is able to handle the predicted demand of about 700,000 aircraft movements in 2020.To handle the predicted passenger amount of 90 million in 2020, Fraport is currently building a new terminal section at Terminal 1. Also, a new Terminal 3 is scheduled to be built south of the existing terminals beginning in 2013.
Terminal 1 expansion
A new pier, called A-Plus, is currently under construction and scheduled to open in 2012. The pier will operate flights to non-Schengen
Schengen Area
The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
destinations and will be used exclusively by 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...
. It will be compatible with 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...
operations and should increase the passenger capacity by six million.
Terminal 3
Fraport
Fraport
Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide is a German transport company which operates the Frankfurt International Airport serving Frankfurt am Main and holds interests in the operation of several other airports around the world. In the past the firm also managed the smaller Frankfurt-Hahn...
also plans to build a large new terminal south of the existing terminals at the ground of the former Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....
. The new Terminal 3 should be able to house up to 25 million passengers and will feature 75 new aircraft positions. An extension of the people mover
People mover
A people mover or automated people mover is a fully automated, grade-separated mass transit system.The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks, but is sometimes applied to considerably more complex automated...
system SkyLine is planned to transport people to Terminal 1, the airport train stations and Terminal 2.
Terminals, airlines, and destinations
Terminals
There are two passenger terminals at the airport: Terminal 1 is divided into concourses A, B and C and Terminal 2 is divided into concourses D and E. Lufthansa also maintains a dedicated terminal for use by their First Class passengers.Terminal 1
Terminal 1 opened on 14 March 1972, and was called Terminal Mitte (Central Terminal) since it was located between two runways, and between the original terminal in the east and the cargo area in the west. It was designed in a modern style for the period, with polished silver interiors and corrugated walls.The terminal is functionally divided into three levels, the departure level in the upper deck with check-in counters, the arrival level with´baggage claim areas at ground level and, underneath, a distribution level with access to the (regional) train station and underground and multilevel parking. Departure and arrivals levels each have separate street approaches. A bus station is located at arrivals level. Parallel to the terminal, on the other side of the street, are a hotel and an office building ("FAC" = Frankfurt Airport Centre). The three-level underground parking garages are beneath those buildings. The tracks of the train station run between the terminal itself and the range of office and hotel buildings.
The landside of Terminal 1 is 420 meters long. Horizontally, it is divided into three areas (Concourses A, B and C).
A satellite view of Terminal 1 shows it to have 54 gates equipped with jetways (25 in Concourse A, 18 in Concourse B, 11 in Concourse C). Frankfurt Airport's official website shows a total of 103 gates (a figure which includes "stand" gates, which are gates with no jetways).
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...
and its Star Alliance
Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's first and largest airline alliance, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany . The alliance was founded in 1997 by five of the world's leading airlines: Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways International and United Airlines...
partners currently dominate Terminal 1.
Terminal 2
Terminal 2 was opened in 1994 containing gate areas D and E. It is to the east of Terminal 1. A continuous concourse between 1C and 2D provides direct access between the two terminals. Terminal 2 has eight gates with jetways and 34 stands, a total of 42 gates.Lufthansa First Class Terminal
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...
has a separate First Class Terminal at Frankfurt Airport (50.049166 N,8.565856 E) for the use of its first class
First class travel
First class is the most luxurious class of accommodation on a train, passenger ship, airplane, or other conveyance. It is usually much more expensive than business class and economy class, and offers the best amenities.-Aviation:...
passengers. The terminal can only be used by passengers flying Lufthansa First Class or Lufthansa's Miles & More HON Circle members. They also must be departing on a flight operated by Air Dolomiti, Austrian Airlines Group, Lufthansa, Lufthansa Regional or SWISS. Passengers flying other Star Alliance partners in First Class do not have access to the First Class Terminal. The terminal has 200 staff and is used by about 300 passengers daily. It provides individualised security screening and customs facilities, valet parking
Valet parking
Valet parking is a parking service offered by some restaurants, stores, and other businesses, particularly in North America. In contrast to "self-parking", where customers find a parking space on their own, customers' vehicles are parked for them by a person called a valet...
, a white-linen restaurant, a cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
room and bubble baths. Passengers clear exit immigration controls in the terminal and then are driven from the terminal directly to their aircraft by a chaffeured Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is a series of luxury sedans produced by Mercedes-Benz, a division of Daimler AG. The classification was officially introduced in 1972 with the W116 S-Class, which succeeded previous Mercedes-Benz models dating to the mid-1950s...
or Porsche Panamera
Porsche Panamera
The Porsche Panamera is a four-door a coupe. It is front-engined with rear-wheel drive, with four-wheel drive versions also available....
. The commercial success of the FCT at Frankfurt has led Lufthansa to plan the opening of a similar facility at Munich Airport.
Airlines and destinations
Cargo Terminal
Airbus A380
Routes an Airlines which are operated by the Airbus A380: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...
:
- Tokyo
- Peking
- Johannesburg
- Miami
- Singapore
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines Limited is the flag carrier airline of Singapore. Singapore Airlines operates a hub at Changi Airport and has a strong presence in the Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, and "Kangaroo Route" markets...
:
- Singapore (Begins 15.January 2012)
- New York (begins 1.January 2012)
Korean Air
Korean Air
Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. , operating as Korean Air, is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of South Korea, with global headquarters located in Seoul, South Korea. Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 130 cities in 45...
:
- Seoul (begins 1. December 2011)
Other features and amenities
Frankfurt has two cargo terminals, North and South, as well as a separate General Aviation Terminal on the south side of the airport. A SheratonSheraton Hotels and Resorts
Sheraton Hotels and Resorts is Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide's largest and second oldest brand . Starwood's headquarters are in White Plains, New York.-Sheraton history:...
hotel with more than 1,000 rooms is adjacent to Terminal 1. Terminal 1 also has a full-service German Post Office and a DHL office open to the public.
Fraport
Fraport
Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide is a German transport company which operates the Frankfurt International Airport serving Frankfurt am Main and holds interests in the operation of several other airports around the world. In the past the firm also managed the smaller Frankfurt-Hahn...
's facilities are on the property of Frankfurt Airport. Its head office building is by Gate 3. As of 2010 Fraport
Fraport
Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide is a German transport company which operates the Frankfurt International Airport serving Frankfurt am Main and holds interests in the operation of several other airports around the world. In the past the firm also managed the smaller Frankfurt-Hahn...
's new headquarters, located by Gate 3, are under construction. The building is scheduled to open in 2012. The Fraport Driving School (Fraport Fahrschule) is in Building 501 of CargoCity South (CargoCity Süd).
Lufthansa Cargo
Lufthansa Cargo
Lufthansa Cargo AG is a cargo airline from Germany, operating worldwide air freight and logistics services on behalf of Lufthansa, of which it is a wholly owned subsidiary. The company is headquartered in Building 451 of the Frankfurt Airport area in Frankfurt, the major hub of Lufthansa...
is headquartered in Building 451 of the Frankfurt Airport area. Lufthansa operates the Lufthansa Aviation Center (LAC) at Frankfurt Airport. Several company departments, including Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, and Media Relations, are based out of the LAC.
Airmail Center Frankfurt, a joint venture of Lufthansa Cargo, Fraport, and Deutsche Post
Deutsche Post
Deutsche Post AG, operating under the trade name Deutsche Post DHL, is the world's largest logistics group. With its headquarters in Bonn, the corporation has 467,088 employees in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide and generated revenue of € 51.48 billion in 2010...
, has its head office in Building 189, between Terminals 1 and 2.
Public transport
There are two railway stations at Frankfurt Airport: one for suburban/regional trains and one for long distance trains.Frankfurt Airport Regional station at Terminal 1 provides access to the S-Bahn
Rhine-Main S-Bahn
The Rhine-Main S-Bahn system is an integrated rapid transit and commuter transport system for the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region, which includes the cities Frankfurt am Main, Wiesbaden, Mainz, Offenbach am Main, Hanau and Darmstadt...
commuter rail lines S8 and S9 which depart every 15 minutes during the day to Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Wiesbaden, the state capital of the German state of Hesse. It is a terminal station at the southern edge of the city center and is served by over 500 long-distance and regional trains and used by more than 30,000 travelers each day.-History:The current station...
in the west via Rüsselsheim
Rüsselsheim
Rüsselsheim is the largest town in the Groß-Gerau district in the Rhein-Main region of Germany. It is one of seven special status towns in Hesse and is located on the Main, only a few kilometres from its mouth in Mainz. The suburbs of Bauschheim and Königstädten are included in Rüsselsheim...
and Mainz
Mainz Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Mainz in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is used by about 80,000 travellers and visitors each day and is therefore one of the busiest 21 stations in Germany...
and to Hanau
Hanau Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for Hanau, Germany and a major rail junction east of Frankfurt am Main.The first Hanau station was built on the Frankfurt-Hanau Railway at the location of the current Hanau West station, close to Hanau city centre....
in the east via Frankfurt Central Station
Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for Frankfurt am Main. In terms of railway traffic, it is the busiest railway station in Germany. With about 350,000 passengers per day the station is the second most frequented railway station in Germany and one of the most frequented in Europe.- Proto-history :In the late...
, Frankfurt city centre and Offenbach am Main. The journey time to Frankfurt Central Station is 11 minutes, to the city centre (Hauptwache
Frankfurt (Main) Hauptwache station
Hauptwache station is a major station in Frankfurt am Main with 181,000 passengers per day, making it the second busiest rapid transit station in the city and a major hub for rail transport in the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region. It is served by eight S-Bahn lines—S1–S6 and S8/S9—and 6 U-Bahn...
) 15 minutes. The first S-Bahn trains arrive at 4:28h from Frankfurt and Hanau, and at 4:29h from Mainz and Wiesbaden; the last ones depart at 1:32h to Frankfurt, at 0:29h to Wiesbaden and at 0:59h to Rüsselsheim.
Regional-Express trains to other destinations like Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof
Saarbrücken Hauptbahnhof is the main or central railway station in the German city of Saarbrücken and the largest station in the Saarland, a German state on the border with France. Around 10 million passengers use the station annually...
in the west, Koblenz
Koblenz Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Koblenz in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is the focal point of rail transport in the Rhine-Moselle-Lahn area. It is a through station in southern Koblenz built below Fort Großfürst Konstantin and opened in 1902 in the Neustadt , which was built...
in the Rhine valley to the north, or Würzburg
Würzburg Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for the city of Würzburg in the German state of Bavaria.Regional and long-distance trains call at the station; it is the southern end of the Hanover-Würzburg high-speed rail line that carries InterCityExpress traffic...
in the east also call at the Regional Railway Station, as do some long distance trains, especially at night when the Long Distance Railway Station is closed.
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 area, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
via Cologne
Cologne
Cologne 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...
at speeds up to 300 km/h (186.4 mph). All ICE trains between Cologne and southern Germany stop at Frankfurt Airport, taking slightly less than an hour from Cologne. About 10 trains per hour depart in all directions.
The station is squeezed in between the A3 and the four-lane Bundesstraße B43, linked to Terminal 1 by a building that bridges the Autobahn. Railway passengers can check in right at the train station for about 60 airlines.
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
operates the AIRail Service
AiRail Service
AIRail Service is offered by Deutsche Bahn AG in cooperation with Lufthansa, American Airlines and Emirates. It is one example of several a dedicated air-rail alliances currently operating worldwide....
in conjunction with 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...
, American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
and Emirates. The service operates to the central stations of Bonn
Bonn Hauptbahnhof
is a railway station located on the left bank of the Rhine along the Cologne–Mainz line. It is the principal station serving the city of Bonn. In addition to extensive rail service from Deutsche Bahn it acts as a hub for local bus, tram, and Stadtbahn services....
, Cologne
Köln Hauptbahnhof
Köln Hauptbahnhof is the central railway station in Cologne, Germany.The station is an important local, national and international hub, with many ICE, Thalys and Intercity trains calling there, as well as regional RegionalExpress, RegionalBahn and local S-Bahn trains...
, Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Düsseldorf in Germany, state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:The station was opened on 1 October 1891 opened as Düsseldorf Central Station...
, Freiburg
Freiburg Hauptbahnhof
The Freiburg Hauptbahnhof is the main train station in the German city of Freiburg im Breisgau. It is a Category 2 station serving southern Baden-Württemberg. It was modernized in 1999, replacing a temporary station built in 1949 after the original 1845 station was destroyed in World War II....
, Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe Hauptbahnhof
is the central railway station in the German city of Karlsruhe. The station is classified as one of the major Category 1 stations in Germany, due to its function as a hub connecting several railway lines with each other.- History :...
, Leipzig
Leipzig Hauptbahnhof
is, at 83,460 m², Europe's largest railway station when measured by floor area. It has 24 platforms housed in six iron trainsheds; a multi-level concourse with towering stone arches; and a 293 metre-long facade...
, Hamburg
Hamburg Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof for the German city of Hamburg. It was opened in 1906 to replace 4 terminal stations. Hamburg Hauptbahnhof is operated by DB Station&Service...
, Hannover
Hannover Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof for the city of Hanover in Lower Saxony, Germany.-History:The first station on the current site, a temporary building serving the line to Lehrte, was erected in 1843...
, Mannheim
Mannheim Hauptbahnhof
is the central railway station of Mannheim in Germany. It is the second largest traffic hub in southwestern Germany after Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof, with 658 trains a day, including 238 long-distance trains. 100,000 passengers embark, disembark or transfer between trains at the station each day...
, Munich
München Hauptbahnhof
Munich Central Station is the main railway station of the city of Munich in Germany. It is one of the three long distance train stations in Munich, the others being München-Pasing and München Ost. The station sees about 350,000 passengers a day, which puts it on par with other large stations in...
, Nuremberg
Nürnberg Hauptbahnhof
Nuremberg Central Station is the main railway station for the city of Nuremberg in Germany. It is the largest station in north Bavaria and belongs to the 20 stations in the highest category of importance allocated by DB Station&Service....
, Stuttgart
Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof
is the Hauptbahnhof of the city of Stuttgart, the capital of the Land of Baden-Württemberg, in southwestern Germany. It is the largest regional and long-distance railway station in Stuttgart, the main node of the Stuttgart S-Bahn network, and, together with the halt at Charlottenplatz, the main...
and to Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe.
Various transport companies provide bus services to the airport.
Car and taxi
Frankfurt Airport is located in the Frankfurt City ForestFrankfurt City Forest
The Frankfurt City Forest or Frankfurter Stadtwald is a forest district in the south of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. There are also other forest areas spread out through the city.-Basic Facts:...
and directly connected to an Autobahn intersection called Frankfurter Kreuz
Frankfurter Kreuz
The Frankfurter Kreuz is an Autobahn interchange in the city of Frankfurt in Hessen, Germany where the autobahns A3 and A5 meet. The interchange was originally to be built from 1931 to 1933, but due to World War II construction was not finished until 1957....
where the A3 and A5
Bundesautobahn 5
is a 445 km long Autobahn in Germany. Its northern end is the Hattenbach triangle intersection is a 445 km (277 mi) long Autobahn in Germany. Its northern end is the Hattenbach triangle intersection is a 445 km (277 mi) long Autobahn in Germany. Its northern end is the...
meet. It takes a 10–15 minutes by car or taxi to get to Frankfurt Central Station or the city centre.
Passengers driving their owns cars can park in multilevel parking garages (mostly underground) along the terminals. A long term holiday parking lot is located south of the runways and connected by shuttle bus to the terminals.
Ground transportation statistics
In 2006, 29.5% of the 12,299,192 passengers whose air travel originated in Frankfurt came by private car, 27.9% came by rail, 20.4% by taxi, 11.1% parked their car at the airport for the duration of their trip, 5.3% came by bus, and 4.6% arrived with a rental car.Incidents and accidents
On 22 May 1983 during an Air showAir show
An air show is an event at which aviators display their flying skills and the capabilities of their aircraft to spectators in aerobatics. Air shows without aerobatic displays, having only aircraft displayed parked on the ground, are called "static air shows"....
at Rhein-Main Air Base, a Canadian RCAF
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter crashed into a nearby road, hitting a car and killing all passengers, a vicar's family of five. The pilot was able to eject.
In 1988 the first leg of Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103 was Pan American World Airways' third daily scheduled transatlantic flight from London Heathrow Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport...
(a Boeing 727) took off from Frankfurt. About half of the passengers and baggage were from other flights and had changed planes to Flight 103 (a Boeing 747) at Heathrow Airport to continue to New York. A bomb exploded on the aircraft above the Scottish town of Lockerbie
Lockerbie
Lockerbie is a town in the Dumfries and Galloway region of south-western Scotland. It lies approximately from Glasgow, and from the English border. It had a population of 4,009 at the 2001 census...
, killing all the passengers on board. The bomb is believed to have been planted by Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
n terrorists.
In September 2007, German
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...
authorities arrested three suspected Islamic terrorists for plotting a "massive" terror attack, which posed "an imminent threat" to Frankfurt Airport and the US Air Force base in Ramstein
Ramstein Air Base
Ramstein Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the German state of Rheinland-Pfalz. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe and is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation...
.
On 2 March 2011, a gunman opened fire
2011 Frankfurt Airport shooting
The 2011 Frankfurt Airport shooting occurred on 2 March, 2011 at Frankfurt Airport in Germany. The shooter, Arid Uka, was arrested and charged with killing two United States soldiers and seriously wounding two others...
on a bus carrying US Air Force personnel at Frankfurt Airport, killing two and wounding two others.
Traffic and statistics
In 2010, Frankfurt Airport was the third busiest airport in Europe in terms of total passenger traffic, but it was second behind Charles de Gaulle in terms of plane movements and cargo traffic.| Rank | Airport | departing Passengers | Airlines |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Berlin-Tegel |
802,000 | 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... , 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.... |
| 2 | Hamburg Hamburg Airport Hamburg Airport , also known as Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel Airport , is an international airport serving Hamburg, Germany.It originally covered . Since then, the site has grown more than tenfold to . The main apron covers . The airport is north of the centre of the city of Hamburg in the Fuhlsbüttel... |
745,100 | Lufthansa, Air Berlin |
| 3 |  London-HeathrowLondon Heathrow Airport London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe... |
639,500 | British Airways British 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... , Lufthansa |
| 4 | Munich |
475,100 | Lufthansa |
| 5 |  Madrid |
459,400 | Iberia, LAN Airlines LAN Airlines LAN Airlines S.A. is an airline based in Santiago, Chile. LAN is currently positioned amongst the largest airlines in Latin America, serving Latin America, United States, the Caribbean, Oceania, and Europe. It is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance... , Lufthansa, 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... |
| 6 |  Chicago-O'HareO'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport , also known as O'Hare Airport, O'Hare Field, Chicago Airport, Chicago International Airport, or simply O'Hare, is a major airport located in the northwestern-most corner of Chicago, Illinois, United States, northwest of the Chicago Loop... |
451,700 | American Airlines American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport... , Lufthansa, United Airlines United Airlines United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental... |
| 7 |  ViennaVienna International Airport Vienna International Airport , located in Schwechat and southeast of central Vienna, is the busiest and biggest airport in Austria. It is often referred to as Schwechat, the name of the county it is in. The airport is capable of handling wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 747 and Airbus A340... |
450,200 | Adria Airways Adria Airways Adria Airways d.d. is the Slovenian national airline. Today, the majority of Adria Airways business is in scheduled flights. Adria operates to 16 cities throughout Europe this winter and offers excellent connections to South East Europe. It is a Star Alliance member since 2004 and a Lufthansa... , 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... , Lufthansa, Niki |
| 8 |  Paris-Charles de Gaulle |
448,200 | 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... , Lufthansa |
| 9 |  SingaporeSingapore Changi Airport Singapore Changi Airport , Changi International Airport, or simply Changi Airport, is the main airport in Singapore. A major aviation hub in Southeast Asia, it is about north-east from the commercial centre in Changi, on a site.... |
429,500 | Lufthansa, Qantas Qantas Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport... , Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines Limited is the flag carrier airline of Singapore. Singapore Airlines operates a hub at Changi Airport and has a strong presence in the Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, and "Kangaroo Route" markets... |
| 10 | New York-JFK John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North... |
365,400 | Delta 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... , Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines |
| 11 |  Istanbul-AtatürkAtatürk International Airport Atatürk International Airport is the major international airport in Istanbul, Turkey. Opened in 1924 and located in Yeşilköy, on the European side of the city, it is west of the city centre. In 1980, the airport was renamed to Atatürk International Airport in honor of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the... |
355,900 | Condor, Lufthansa, 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... |
| 12 |  DubaiDubai International Airport Dubai International Airport is an international airport serving Dubai, the largest city of the United Arab Emirates. It is a major aviation hub in the Middle East, and is the main airport of Dubai. It is situated in the Al Garhoud district, southeast of Dubai... |
337,700 | Condor, Emirates, Lufthansa |
| 13 | Washington-Dulles Washington Dulles International Airport Washington Dulles International Airport is a public airport in Dulles, Virginia, 26 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C. The airport serves the Baltimore-Washington-Northern Virginia metropolitan area centered on the District of Columbia. It is named after John Foster Dulles, Secretary of... |
334,900 | Lufthansa, United Airlines |
| 14 |  Bangkok-SuvarnabhumiSuvarnabhumi Airport Suvarnabhumi Airport , also known as Bangkok International Airport, is an international airport serving Bangkok, Thailand. It was officially opened for limited domestic flight service on 15 September 2006, and opened for most domestic and all international commercial flights on 28 September... |
330,900 | Lufthansa, Thai Airways Thai Airways Thai Airways Company or Thai Airways was the domestic flag carrier of Thailand. Its main base was the Domestic Terminal at Don Mueang International Airport: DMK . Its head office was located in Pom Prap Sattru Phai, Bangkok... |
| 15 |  Rome-Fiumicino |
320,300 | Alitalia Alitalia Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. , in its later stages known as Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. in Extraordinary Administration, was the former Italian flag carrier... , Ethiopian Airlines Ethiopian Airlines Ethiopian Airlines , formerly Ethiopian Air Lines, often referred to as simply Ethiopian, is an airline headquartered on the grounds of Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It serves as the country's flag carrier, and is wholly owned by the Government of Ethiopia... , Lufthansa |
| 16 | Barcelona |
290,600 | Lufthansa, 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... |
| 17 |  Tokyo-NaritaNarita International Airport is an international airport serving the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is located east of Tokyo Station and east-southeast of Narita Station in the city of Narita, and the adjacent town of Shibayama.... |
290,600 | All Nippon Airways All Nippon Airways , also known as or ANA, is one of the largest airlines in Japan. It is headquartered at the Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It operates services to 49 destinations in Japan and 35 international routes and employed over 14,000 employees as of May 2009... , Japan Airlines Japan Airlines is an airline headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan. It is the flag carrier of Japan and its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Tokyo International Airport , as well as Nagoya's Chūbu Centrair International Airport and Osaka's Kansai International Airport... , Lufthansa |
| 18 |  Toronto-PearsonToronto Pearson International Airport Toronto Pearson International Airport is an international airport serving Toronto, Ontario, Canada; its metropolitan area; and the Golden Horseshoe, an urban agglomeration that is home to 8.1 million people – approximately 25% of Canada's population... |
289,100 | Air Canada Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a... , Air Transat Air Transat Air Transat is an airline based in Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, operating scheduled and charter flights, serving 60 destinations in 25 countries. The airline is owned and operated by Transat A.T. Inc. During the summer season its main destinations are Europe and in the winter season the... , Lufthansa |
| 19 | Antalya Antalya 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... |
285,000 | Condor, Pegasus Airlines Pegasus Airlines Pegasus Airlines is a low-cost airline headquartered in the Halkalı area of Küçükçekmece, Istanbul, Turkey. Formerly a charter airline in partnership with Aer Lingus, Pegasus is now completely controlled by Esas Holding.- History :... , Sky Airlines Sky Airlines Sky Airlines is an airline which operates chartered flights. It is based in Antalya, Turkey, operating on behalf of tour operators on short and medium haul routes into Turkey. The company was established in 2000 and started operations in 2001. It is wholly owned to by Kayi Group... , SunExpress SunExpress SunExpress is an airline based in Antalya, Turkey. It operates scheduled and charter flights to destinations in Europe. Its main base is Antalya International Airport .-History:... , TUIFly TUIfly TUIfly Vermarktungs GmbH is an airline based at Hannover Airport in Langenhagen, Lower Saxony, Germany. The airline offers both charter and scheduled low-cost flights. About 60% of all seats are sold directly, 30% as a part of a TUI holiday package and 10% by other agencies... , XL Airways XL Airways XL Airways may refer to:* XL Airways France* XL Airways Germany* XL Airways UK, which is defunct following XL Leisure Group's insolvency... |
| 20 |  Amsterdam |
287,200 | KLM, Lufthansa |
| 21 | Palma de Mallorca Palma 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... |
285,000 | Air Berlin, Condor, TUIfly, Lufthansa |
| 22 | San Francisco San Francisco International Airport San Francisco International Airport is a major international airport located south of downtown San Francisco, California, United States, near the cities of Millbrae and San Bruno in unincorporated San Mateo County. It is often referred to as SFO... |
277,300 | Lufthansa, United Airlines |
| 23 |  CopenhagenCopenhagen Airport Copenhagen Airport is the main international airport serving Copenhagen, Denmark and the Oresund Region. It is located on the island of Amager, south of Copenhagen city centre, and west of Malmö city centre on the other side of the Oresund Bridge. The airport lies mainly in the municipality... |
276,400 | Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines |
| 24 |  Zurich |
272,700 | Lufthansa, Swiss International Air Lines Swiss International Air Lines Swiss International Air Lines AG is the principal airline of Switzerland operating scheduled services in Europe and to North America, South America, Africa and Asia. Its main hub is Zurich Airport... |
| 25 |  Beijing-CapitalBeijing Capital International Airport Beijing Capital International Airport, is the main international airport serving Beijing, China. It is located northeast of Beijing's city center in an enclave of Chaoyang District that is surrounded by rural Shunyi District. The airport is owned and operated by the Beijing Capital... |
270,500 | 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... , Lufthansa |
| 26 | Shanghai-Pudong Shanghai Pudong International Airport Shanghai Pudong International Airport is the primary international airport serving Shanghai, China, and a major aviation hub in Asia. The other major airport in Shanghai, Hongqiao, mainly serves domestic flights... |
264,900 | Air China, China Eastern Airlines China Eastern Airlines China Eastern Airlines Corporation Limited is an airline headquartered on the grounds of Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport in Changning District, Shanghai, China. It is a major Chinese airline operating international, domestic and regional routes. Its main hubs are at Shanghai Pudong... , Lufthansa |
| 27 |  Stockholm-ArlandaStockholm-Arlanda Airport Stockholm Arlanda Airport , is an international airport located in the Sigtuna Municipality of Sweden, near the town of Märsta, north of Stockholm and nearly , by road, south-east of Uppsala.... |
264,000 | Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines |
| 28 | Newark Newark Liberty International Airport Newark Liberty International Airport , first named Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport within the city limits of both Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States... |
255,000 | Continental Continental Airlines Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc... , Lufthansa |
| 29 |  Lisbon |
253,900 | Lufthansa, TAP Portugal TAP Portugal TAP Portugal, commonly known as TAP, is the national airline of Portugal. It has its head office in Building 25 on the grounds of Portela Airport in Lisbon, and has been a member of the Star Alliance since 14 March 2005, the same day on which the company celebrated its 60th anniversary... |
| 30 |  Seoul-IncheonIncheon International Airport Incheon International Airport is the largest airport in South Korea, the primary airport serving the Seoul national capital area, and one of the largest and busiest airports in the world... |
236,400 | Asiana Airlines Asiana Airlines Asiana Airlines Inc. is one of South Korea's two major airlines, along with Korean Air. Asiana has its headquarters in Asiana Town in Osoe-dong, Gangseo-gu, Seoul... , Korean Air Korean Air Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. , operating as Korean Air, is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of South Korea, with global headquarters located in Seoul, South Korea. Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 130 cities in 45... , Lufthansa |
| 31 |  Athens |
228,100 | 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... , Lufthansa |
| 32 |  São Paulo-Guarulhos |
223,500 | Lufthansa, TAM Airlines |
| 33 |  HelsinkiHelsinki Airport Helsinki Airport or Helsinki-Vantaa Airport is the main international airport of the Helsinki metropolitan region and the whole of Finland. It is located in Vantaa, Finland, about west of Tikkurila, the centre of Vantaa, and north of Helsinki city centre... |
222,700 | 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... , Lufthansa |
| 34 |  Hong KongHong Kong International Airport Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial... |
221,700 | Cathay Pacific Cathay Pacific Cathay Pacific is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main hub located at Hong Kong International Airport, although the airline's registered office is on the 33rd floor of One Pacific Place... , Lufthansa |
| 35 |  Moscow-DomodedovoDomodedovo International Airport Moscow Domodedovo Airport or Domodedovo International Airport is an international airport located in Domodedovsky District, Moscow Oblast, Russia, south-southeast of the centre of Moscow... |
220,500 | Lufthansa, S7 Airlines S7 Airlines OJSC Siberia Airlines , operating as S7 Airlines, is an airline headquartered in Ob, Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia, with offices in Moscow. S7 Airlines has been Russia's fastest-growing airline and recently passed Aeroflot as Russia's largest domestic airline.S7 has operated scheduled passenger... , Transaero Transaero OJSC Transaero Airlines or simply Transaero is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Domodedovo International Airport, Domodedovsky District, Moscow Oblast, Russia. It operates scheduled and charter flights to more than 99 domestic and international destinations... |
| 36 |  Prague |
220,000 | 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... , Lufthansa |
| 37 |  DublinDublin Airport Dublin Airport, , is operated by the Dublin Airport Authority. Located in Collinstown, in the Fingal part of County Dublin, 18.4 million passengers passed through the airport in 2010, making it the busiest airport in the Republic of Ireland, followed by Cork and Shannon... |
214,700 | Aer Lingus Aer Lingus Aer Lingus Group Plc is the flag carrier of Ireland. It operates a fleet of Airbus aircraft serving Europe and North America. It is Ireland's oldest extant airline, and its second largest after low-cost rival Ryanair... , Lufthansa |
| 38 |  Oslo-GardermoenOslo Airport, Gardermoen Oslo Airport, Gardermoen is the principal airport serving Oslo, Norway. It acts as the main domestic hub and international airport for Norway, and the second-busiest airport in the Nordic countries. A hub for Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle, and a focus city for Widerøe, it is... |
213,300 | Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines |
| 39 |  Tel AvivBen Gurion International Airport Ben Gurion International Airport , also referred to by its Hebrew acronym Natbag , is the largest and busiest international airport in Israel, handling 12,160,339 passengers in 2010... |
211,300 | El Al El Al El Al Israel Airlines Ltd , trading as El Al , is the flag carrier of Israel. It operates scheduled domestic and international services and cargo flights to Europe, North America, Africa and the Far East from its main base in Ben Gurion International Airport... , Lufthansa, Sun d'Or International Airlines |
| 40 |  Johannesburg |
209,300 | Lufthansa, South African Airways South African Airways South African Airways is the national flag carrier and largest airline of South Africa, with headquarters in Airways Park on the grounds of OR Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, Gauteng. The airline flies to 36 destinations worldwide from its hub at OR Tambo International... |
See also
- FraportFraportFraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide is a German transport company which operates the Frankfurt International Airport serving Frankfurt am Main and holds interests in the operation of several other airports around the world. In the past the firm also managed the smaller Frankfurt-Hahn...
- Frankfurt-Hahn AirportFrankfurt-Hahn Airport-Cargo airlines:-Other facilities:AirIT Services AG, a subsidiary of Fraport, has its head office in Building 663 at Hahn Airport.-References:*Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982 USAF Reference Series, Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force,...
- Frankfurt Airport long-distance station
- Rhein-Main Air BaseRhein-Main Air BaseRhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....