Tbilisi International Airport
Encyclopedia
Tbilisi International Airport is the main international airport
in Georgia
, located 17 km (10.6 mi) southeast of the capital Tbilisi
.
Avenue leads from the airport to downtown Tbilisi.
The airport is a product of a contemporary and functional design, boasting high technology. It is designed to provide the optimum flow of both passengers and luggage from the parking lot to the planes with a 25,000 square meter total usable area. It has the ability and flexibility to easily facilitate future expansions without interrupting terminal operations. It has been fitted with high-tech contemporary systems, keeping passenger convenience and efficiency of the terminal operations in mind, throughout functional spaces organized in an elegant manner. The Food and Beverage operations at the Tbilisi International Airport are carried out by BTA at 7 points with a staff of 75, while ATU provides Duty Free services at its four stores.
The implementing agency and the borrower for the project is TAV
Urban Georgia, a concessionaire and SPV for the construction and operation of Tbilisi International Airport.
The total project cost was 90.5 million USD. The capacity of the new terminal building is 2.8 million passengers per year.
In 2007, the airport handled 615,873 passengers, representing an increase of 8.5 % over 2006. The number of aircraft movements increased by 18.7%. In 2009, the airport handled 702,373 passengers and 12,245 tonnes of cargo, in 2010 it handled 820,000 passengers.
Many international airlines now operate from Tbilisi, connecting the capital of Georgia to some of the world's most important cities, including Amsterdam
, Athens
, Almaty
, Dubai
, Doha
, Frankfurt
, Istanbul
, London
, Moscow
, Munich
, Paris
, Prague
, Tehran
, Tel Aviv
, Vienna
and Warsaw
. This also allows passengers flying to or departing from Georgia to benefit from the choice of additional destinations offered by the large European transit airlines who serve Tbilisi from their hubs.
Negotiations are being held with French and German companies in order to rehabilitate the old runway 13L/31R. The rehabilitation will enable the airport to have two operational runways.
the building featured a floor plan with symmetric axes and a monumental risalit
in the form of a portico
. The two side wings featured blind arcade
s in giant order
. A new terminal building was finished in 1990, designed in the International style
.
In 1981 Tbilisi airport was the twelfth largest airport in the Soviet Union, with 1,478,000 passengers on so-called central lines, that is on flights connecting Tbilisi with cities in other union republics. In 1998 the number of passenger had shrunk to 230,000 per year.
only six flights per week between Tbilisi and Moscow-Domodedovo
are permitted on a charter basis. The Georgian government is negotiating with several airlines in the hope to increase the number of destinations. These airlines include Wizz Air
, Ryanair
and Air France
.
Note:
1. Privatair
operating for Lufthansa
from Frankfurt to Pune (India), utilise Tbilisi Airport as a technical stopover on the return PNQ-FRA sector .
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...
in Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, located 17 km (10.6 mi) southeast of the capital Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
.
Overview
In February 2007, the reconstruction project was finished. The project consisted of construction of a new international terminal, car park, improvements to the apron, taxiway and runway and acquisition of ground handling equipment at Tbilisi International Airport. A rail link to the city centre has been constructed. There is an infrequent rail service to the city centre of Tbilisi (6 trains per day in each direction). George W. BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
Avenue leads from the airport to downtown Tbilisi.
The airport is a product of a contemporary and functional design, boasting high technology. It is designed to provide the optimum flow of both passengers and luggage from the parking lot to the planes with a 25,000 square meter total usable area. It has the ability and flexibility to easily facilitate future expansions without interrupting terminal operations. It has been fitted with high-tech contemporary systems, keeping passenger convenience and efficiency of the terminal operations in mind, throughout functional spaces organized in an elegant manner. The Food and Beverage operations at the Tbilisi International Airport are carried out by BTA at 7 points with a staff of 75, while ATU provides Duty Free services at its four stores.
The implementing agency and the borrower for the project is TAV
Tepe Akfen Ventures
Tepe Akfen Ventures, also Tepe Akfen Holdings is a company, headquartered in Istanbul, that builds and controls airports in Turkey, Macedonia, Georgia, and Tunisia.-History:...
Urban Georgia, a concessionaire and SPV for the construction and operation of Tbilisi International Airport.
The total project cost was 90.5 million USD. The capacity of the new terminal building is 2.8 million passengers per year.
In 2007, the airport handled 615,873 passengers, representing an increase of 8.5 % over 2006. The number of aircraft movements increased by 18.7%. In 2009, the airport handled 702,373 passengers and 12,245 tonnes of cargo, in 2010 it handled 820,000 passengers.
Many international airlines now operate from Tbilisi, connecting the capital of Georgia to some of the world's most important cities, including Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Almaty
Almaty
Almaty , also known by its former names Verny and Alma-Ata , is the former capital of Kazakhstan and the nation's largest city, with a population of 1,348,500...
, Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, Doha
Doha
Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar...
, 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...
, Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. This also allows passengers flying to or departing from Georgia to benefit from the choice of additional destinations offered by the large European transit airlines who serve Tbilisi from their hubs.
Negotiations are being held with French and German companies in order to rehabilitate the old runway 13L/31R. The rehabilitation will enable the airport to have two operational runways.
History
The first airport terminal building was constructed in 1952. Designed by the architect V. Beridze in the style of Stalinist architectureStalinist architecture
Stalinist architecture , also referred to as Stalinist Gothic, or Socialist Classicism, is a term given to architecture of the Soviet Union between 1933, when Boris Iofan's draft for Palace of the Soviets was officially approved, and 1955, when Nikita Khrushchev condemned "excesses" of the past...
the building featured a floor plan with symmetric axes and a monumental risalit
Risalit
A risalit, from the Italian risalto for "projection", is a German term which refers to a part of a building that juts out, usually over the full height of the building. In English the French term avant-corps is sometimes used. It is common in façades in the baroque period.A corner risalit is where...
in the form of a portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
. The two side wings featured blind arcade
Blind arcade
A blind arcade is an arcade that is composed of a series of arches that has no actual openings and that is applied to the surface of a wall as a decorative element: i.e. the arches are not windows or openings but are part of the masonry face. It is designed as an ornamental architectural element,...
s in giant order
Giant order
In Classical architecture, a giant order is an order whose columns or pilasters span two stories...
. A new terminal building was finished in 1990, designed in the International style
International style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
.
In 1981 Tbilisi airport was the twelfth largest airport in the Soviet Union, with 1,478,000 passengers on so-called central lines, that is on flights connecting Tbilisi with cities in other union republics. In 1998 the number of passenger had shrunk to 230,000 per year.
Airlines and destinations
Tbilisi airport mainly serves destinations in the former Soviet Union and Europe. Due to the strained Georgian-Russian relationsGeorgia–Russia relations
Georgia–Russia relations are the relations between Georgia and Russia and between the Georgian and Russian people in particular, lasting from the 18th century....
only six flights per week between Tbilisi and Moscow-Domodedovo
Domodedovo 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...
are permitted on a charter basis. The Georgian government is negotiating with several airlines in the hope to increase the number of destinations. These airlines include Wizz Air
Wizz Air
Wizz Air Hungary Légiközlekedési Kft. is a Hungarian low-cost airline with headquarters in the Airport Business Park C2 in Vecsés, close to Budapest Ferihegy International Airport, Hungary. The airline typically uses secondary airports serving many cities across Europe.- History :The airline was...
, Ryanair
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline. Its head office is at Dublin Airport and its primary operational bases at Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airport....
and 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...
.
Note:
1. Privatair
PrivatAir
PrivatAir is a private airline business, headquartered at Geneva International Airport in Meyrin, Switzerland. It operates a fleet of Boeings. Its clients are businesses and celebrities.- History :...
operating for 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...
from Frankfurt to Pune (India), utilise Tbilisi Airport as a technical stopover on the return PNQ-FRA sector .