Iturup Airport | |
Nativename-A: | Аэропорт Итуруп |
Iata: | ITU[1] |
Icao: | UHSI[2] |
Lid: | ККУ |
Pushpin Map: | Russia Sakhalin Oblast#Japan |
Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of airport in Sakhalin Oblast |
Pushpin Label: | ITU |
Pushpin Label Position: | bottom |
Type: | Public |
Operator: | Kuril Islands Airports (Аэропорты Курильских островов) |
City-Served: | Kurilsk, Iturup Island |
Elevation-F: | 387 |
Metric-Rwy: | y |
R1-Number: | 13/31 |
R1-Length-M: | 2300 |
R1-Surface: | Concrete |
Iturup Airport (Russian: Аэропорт Итуруп) is a public airport on Iturup Island, in the Kuril Archipelago, Russia. It is located 7km (04miles) northeast of the town of Kurilsk.[3]
The airport has been in commercial operation since 22 September 2014.[4] It has been built in a swampy taiga and is the first airport built from scratch in Russia's post-Soviet history.[4] In 2018, Iturup became a joint civil-military airport with the stationing there of a flight of Su-35S fighters from the 23rd Fighter Aviation Regiment, designated Yasny air base.[5]
Before Iturup Airport was built, Burevestnik Military Air Base, located 40 km southwest from the town center (or 60 km by road), had been the only airport serving Kurilsk. Now, it becomes a reserve airfield for Iturup. Because it is often closed due to fog, the new Iturup Airport improves air traffic punctuality.[4]
The airport's only runway (marked 13/31) is 2300x and has a concrete surface,[3] equipped with an Instrument Landing System and glideslope which facilitate Instrument Flight Rules landings.[3]