is an airport

Airport

An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...

 in Matsushige

Matsushige, Tokushima

is a town located in Itano District, Tokushima, Japan.As of 2003, the town haa an estimated population of 14,797 and a density of 1,129.54 per km². The total area is 13.10 km²....

, Tokushima

Tokushima Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located on Shikoku island. The capital is the city of Tokushima.- Tokushima Prefecture and Myodo Prefecture :Long ago, Tokushima City belonged to a region known as Myōdō-gun...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, near the city of Tokushima

Tokushima, Tokushima

is the capital city of Tokushima Prefecture on Shikoku island in Japan.As of May 1, 2011, the city had an estimated population of 263,372, with 114,325 households, and a population density of 1,377.25 persons per km². Its total area is 191.23 km²....

.

In addition to scheduled passenger operations, the airport is the base of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force

The , or JMSDF, is the naval branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. It was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy after World War II....

 Tokusima Air Training Group of 202 Air Training Squadron equipped with Beechcraft TC-90, and UH-60J Search and Rescue helicopter of one flight which detached from JMSDF 72 Squadron. As a result, it is the busiest airport in Shikoku

Shikoku

is the smallest and least populous of the four main islands of Japan, located south of Honshū and east of the island of Kyūshū. Its ancient names include Iyo-no-futana-shima , Iyo-shima , and Futana-shima...

 by aircraft operations, with around 15,000 takeoffs and landings each year. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force

Japan Ground Self-Defense Force

The , or JGSDF, is the army of Japan. The largest of the three services of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, the Ground Self-Defense Force operates under the command of the chief of the ground staff, based in the city of Ichigaya, Tokyo. The present chief of ground staff is General Yoshifumi Hibako...

 has established the 14 Squadron flying at least 2 Fuji UH-1J and 1 Kawasaki OH-6D by Mid April 2010 at Tokusima airport.

History

Tokushima Airport opened as an Imperial Japanese Navy

Imperial Japanese Navy

The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...

 air base in 1941.

The current runway was completed in 1987; it is currently being extended to 2500 m (8,202 ft), with projected completion in 2010.

In previous years, the airport has had scheduled service to Kagoshima

Kagoshima Airport

-External links:* *...

 (1997–98), Kansai

Kansai International Airport

is an international airport located on an artificial island in the middle of Osaka Bay, southwest of Ōsaka Station, located within three municipalities, including Izumisano , Sennan , and Tajiri , in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. The airport is off the Honshu shore. The airport serves as an...

 (briefly in 2000), and Osaka/Itami

Osaka International Airport

or Osaka-Itami International Airport is the primary domestic airport for the Kansai region of Japan, including the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe. It is classified as a first class airport....

 (until 2003). There are currently 12 scheduled flights per day.

On April 13, 2006, Skymark Airlines

Skymark Airlines

is a low-cost airline headquartered at Tokyo International Airport in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, operating scheduled passenger services within Japan...

 discontinued its flights to Tokyo International Airport (Haneda) leaving 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...

 as the sole carrier to Tokyo. In response to Skymark's exit, Japan Airlines increased the number of flights between the two cities. Since Tokyo-Haneda opened its fourth runway, 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...

 announced to resume its service to Tokyo.

A new passenger terminal has opened in the first quarter of 2010.

Airlines and destinations

External links

• Airport website (English)
• Tokushima Air Base Museum