Ny-Ålesund Airport, Hamnerabben
Ny-Ålesund Airport, Hamnerabben Ny-Ålesund flyplass, Hamnerabben | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Private | ||||||||||
| Operator | Kings Bay | ||||||||||
| Serves | Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway | ||||||||||
| Location | Hamnerabben | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 131 ft / 40 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 78°55′40″N 011°52′29″E / 78.92778°N 11.87472°E | ||||||||||
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Location of airport in Svalbard Location of Svalbard | |||||||||||
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Ny-Ålesund Airport, Hamnerabben (Norwegian: Ny-Ålesund flyplass, Hamnerabben; ICAO: ENAS) is an airport serving the research community of Ny-Ålesund in Svalbard, Norway. The airport is owned by Kings Bay, who also owns the company town. The only flights available are to Svalbard Airport, Longyear, operated two to four times a week by Lufttransport using Dornier 228 aircraft. The services are organized as corporate charters and tickets are only available after permission from Kings Bay.
Between 1925 and 1928, Ny-Ålesund saw four air expeditions to the North Pole, two of which required the construction of an airship hangar and mast. The first proposal for an airport in Ny-Ålesund was launched in 1956 by Norsk Polar Navigasjon, who proposed an airport at Kvadehuksletta. Soviet protests against the airport caused the Norwegian authorities to oppose the plans, which were abandoned in the early 1960s. Construction at Hamnerabben started in 1965 following the decision to build Kongsfjord Telemetry Station. The airport first hosted service to temporary landing strips near Longyearbyen, but from 1975 served Svalbard Airport. Lufttransport started flights with helicopters in the 1980s, but from 1989 has flown with fixed-wing aircraft.