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Ishigaki Airport Ishigaki Jima Airport 石垣空港 Ishigaki Kūkō
IATA: ISG ICAO: ROIG
Summary
Operator	Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport
Location	Ishigaki, Okinawa, Japan
Elevation AMSL	86 ft / 26 m
Coordinates	24°20′41″N 124°11′13″E
Map
ROIG Location in Japan
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 04/22 1,500 4,921 Asphalt/Concrete
Source: Japanese AIP at AIS Japan

Ishigaki Airport (石垣空港, Ishigaki Kūkō), (IATA: ISG, ICAO: ROIG) is a third-class airport located 1 NM (1.9 km; 1.2 mi) from Ishigaki city centre in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The airport fields flights to major cities on the Japanese mainland as well as destinations throughout Okinawa Prefecture and the Yaeyama Islands.

History

The airport was opened in 1943 for military use, and converted to a civilian airport in 1956. The runway was extended from 1,200 to 1,500 m (3,937 to 4,921 ft) in 1968, allowing YS-11 aircraft to land.

Future

The airport presently serves about 1.8 million passengers a year, making it the second busiest third-class airport in Japan, behind Kobe Airport, and traffic has been growing steadily as the Yaeyama Islands have become a popular tourist destination. However, the current runway cannot accommodate planes larger than a Boeing 737, and the present site is not suitable for expansion due to urban encroachment. The airport also does not have facilities for handling standard cargo containers.

To meet these needs, New Ishigaki Airport (新石垣空港, Shin-Ishigaki Kūkō) is under construction on the eastern side of the island. Plans for the new airport date back to 1979, when the prefectural government planned to build a 2,500 m (8,202 ft) runway by the shore at Shiraho (白保). However, due to concerns about coral, the residents of Shiraho have long opposed the project. In addition, historical artifacts from the Shiraho Saonetabaru Cave Ruins some 18,000 to 15,000 years old have been dug up, impacting the timeline of the project.

The new airport is supposed to have a 2,000 m (6,562 ft) runway, expandable to 2,500 m (8,202 ft). Construction started in October 2006, for completion by 2013. However, due to delays it is expected to be pushed out.

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Air Dolphin	Hateruma, Naha, Tarama
All Nippon Airways operated by Air Nippon	Naha
Japan Airlines operated by Japan Transocean Air	Chubu-Centrair, Osaka-Kansai, Miyakojima, Naha, Tokyo-Haneda, Yonaguni
Japan Transocean Air operated by Ryukyu Air Commuter	Miyako, Yonaguni
Mandarin Airlines	Seasonal Charters: Taipei-Taoyuan
Transasia Airways	Charters: Hualien

External links

• Ishigaki Airport
• New Ishigaki Airport (in Japanese)
• Ishigaki Airport Guide from Japan Airlines
• Current weather for ROIG at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for ISG at Aviation Safety Network

Category:Airports in Okinawa Category:Airports established in 1943

Southwest Air Lines Flight 611

Accident
Date	26 August 1982
Summary	Runway overrun
Site	Ishigaki Airport, Japan
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Boeing 737-200
Operator	Southwest Air Lines (now Japan Transocean Air)
Registration	JA8444
Flight origin	Naha Airport, Okinawa, Japan
Destination	Ishigaki Airport, Japan
Passengers	133
Crew	5
Fatalities	0
Injuries	67
Survivors	138 (all)

Southwest Air Lines Flight 611 (now known as Japan Transocean Air, and not the Texas-based airline of similar name) was a landing accident on 26 August 1982. The Boeing 737-200 overran the runway on landing at Ishigaki Airport. The aircraft caught fire and was destroyed, but none of the 133 passengers and 5 crew died in the accident although two crew and one passenger were seriously injured.

Accident

Southwest Air Lines Flight 611 took off on runway 36 from Naha Airport on the island of Okinawa at 13:09 for a regular flight to Ishigaki Airport, Japan. The aircraft climbed to the cruising altitude of FL240 (approximately 24,000 ft/7,315 m). On approach to Ishigaki, the crew was given weather information for Ishigaki — wind 300 degrees at 12 [[Knot (speed)|knots; temperature 32 degrees C (89.6 degrees F); active runway: Runway 22. The crew of Flight 611 made a crosswind landing at a speed slightly higher than the reference airspeed. The aircraft bounced and on touching down again the spoilers and thrust reversers did not seem to operate. The flight crew shut down both engines but this action disabled the anti-skid braking system, and during the landing roll the inner tires on both main gear legs burst almost simultaneously. Flight 611 overran the runway and came to rest rest 145 meters (476 feet) beyond the threshold at 13:49. Everyone on board was evacuated from the aircraft, and at 14:01 the Boeing 737 caught fire and was destroyed.

None of the 138 passengers and crew were killed in the accident, but 67 were injured after the aircraft overran the runway. Serious injuries were prevented by a quick evacuation although a stewardess and an elderly woman passenger were detained in hospital.

References

• Aviation Safety Network