Gagarin International Airport[2] (Russian: Международный Аэропорт Гагарин) is an airport near Saratov, Russia, that has been in operation since 20 August 2019.

Gagarin International Airport[1]

Международный Аэропорт Гагарин
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorAirports of Regions
ServesSaratov
LocationSaburovka, Saratov oblast, Russia
Elevation AMSL31 m / 103 ft
Coordinates51°42′46″N 46°10′16″E / 51.71278°N 46.17111°E / 51.71278; 46.17111
Websitegsv.aero
Map
Gagarin International Airport[1] is located in Russia
Gagarin International Airport[1]
Gagarin International Airport[1]
Saratov Saratov Oblast
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
08/26 3,000 x 45 (width) 9,840 Concrete

History

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Saratov Central Airport had been the airport that served Saratov for many decades, having been opened under Soviet rule in 1931. Originally, the airfield was built relatively far away from the city, but the city's limits slowly caught up to the airport. By the early 1990s, the airfield was completely surrounded by an urban area with no room to expand. At the time there still was plenty of excess capacity left over to soak up the ever-growing passenger numbers; however, by about the mid-2000s it was realised that Saratov Central would soon be too small to handle the forecast passenger numbers.[3]

 
Satellite imagery of airport construction (2015)
 
Satellite imagery of airport (2020)

Airports of Regions

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In 2014, "Airports of Regions" presented a project for the new Saratov Airport. At that time it was still unknown whether it would be built on the old area, or on a new one. In January 2015, construction of the airport began. The terminal complex is currently[when?] being constructed.[4][5] The total amount spent for the construction is from 10 to 7 billion rubles.[6] It will be the third airport in Russia to be built from scratch after the breakup of the Soviet Union, after Talakan Airport in Yakutia and Platov International Airport in Rostov-on-Don, which also belongs to Airports of Regions.

Name decision

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Airports of Regions initially gave the current airport's name to the one that is under construction, but in August, the constructors decided to call it "Gagarin".[7][8] This has created confusion, since Orenburg Airport already has a similar name.

Airlines and destinations

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Terminal hall
 
Check-in counters
 
Terminal corridor
AirlinesDestinations
Aeroflot Moscow–Sheremetyevo
azimuth Mineralnye Vody, Ufa
IrAero Baku[9]
Nordwind Airlines Kaliningrad[10]
Pobeda Moscow–Sheremetyevo, Moscow–Vnukovo,[11] Saint Petersburg,[12] Sochi
Red Wings Airlines Yekaterinburg
Rossiya Moscow–Sheremetyevo
S7 Airlines Novosibirsk[13]
Shirak Avia Yerevan[14]
Utair Seasonal charter: Surgut

Transportation

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Buses depart hourly from Saratov to the airport. The journey takes approximately 40 minutes.

Rail

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The airport is connected by an alley to the railway platform. In case of the passenger increase, the airport will construct a separate railway terminal for the airport's needs. There is a separate express service to Saratov Railway Terminal and other standard services connecting the airport to other settlements, including Engels. The journey to Saratov takes 40 minutes.

Road

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The airport is connected by a route that is next to the city, that was constructed specifically for the airport.[15]

Water

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The Volga river is near to the airport which makes it able to be connected to Saratov by water transport. Currently the journey takes 2 hours, but the Saratov Government promises to include in the service the express water-buses, that will shorten the journey.

References

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  1. ^ "В Сети ведется видеотрансляция строительства аэропорта "Гагаринский"". vzsar.ru. 13 September 2017.
  2. ^ "Новому аэропорту в Саратовской области присвоили имя Гагарин". ТАСС. Retrieved 2018-09-06.
  3. ^ "Саратовский блогер развеял мифы о новом аэропорте в Сабуровке". fn-volga.ru. 9 November 2017.
  4. ^ "В новом аэропорту Саратова начали строить терминал". ato.ru. 30 June 2017.
  5. ^ "В Сабуровке строители возводят первый этаж здания аэровокзала". Komsomol'skaya Pravda. 26 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Объем инвестиций в строительство аэропорта в Сабуровке снизился на треть". stroysar.ru. 6 March 2017.
  7. ^ "Аэропорт в Сабуровке назовут в честь Гагарина". fn-volga.ru. 16 August 2017.
  8. ^ "Названо имя нового аэропорта в Сабуровке". 4vsar.ru. 22 October 2017.
  9. ^ "Russian IrAero airline launches new flights to Azerbaijan". Trend.Az. 15 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  10. ^ "4 старо-новых прямых рейса в Калининград — из Новосибирска, Кирова, Саратова и Ульяновска | Vandrouki.ru". vandrouki.ru. 29 January 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  11. ^ "Авиакомпания "Победа" запустит ежедневные рейсы между Москвой и Саратовом с 20 августа". www.mskagency.ru (in Russian). Агентство "Москва". 9 July 2019. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  12. ^ ""Победа" начнет летать из саратовского аэропорта "Гагарин" в Санкт-Петербург". TASS. 22 August 2019.
  13. ^ "В аэропорту «Гагарин» открывается рейс в Новосибирск". gsv.aero. SarAero-Invest JSC. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  14. ^ "Shirak Avia Expands Russia Network in 4Q22". Aeroroutes. 29 November 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  15. ^ "Выделенные федерацией 750 миллионов пустят на строительство дороги к новому аэропорту". fn-colga.ru. 9 October 2017.
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