Cologne Bonn Airport (German: Flughafen Köln/Bonn „Konrad Adenauer“) (IATA: CGN, ICAO: EDDK) is the international airport of Germany's fourth-largest city Cologne, and also serves Bonn, the former capital of West Germany. With approximately 12.4 million passengers passing through it in 2017, it is the seventh-largest passenger airport in Germany and the third-largest in terms of cargo operations. By traffic units, which combines cargo and passengers, the airport is in fifth position in Germany.[5] As of March 2015, Cologne Bonn Airport had services to 115 passenger destinations in 35 countries.[6] The airport is named after Cologne native Konrad Adenauer, the first post-war Chancellor of West Germany. The facility covers 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) and contains three runways.[7]
Cologne Bonn Airport Flughafen Köln/Bonn | |||||||||||||||||||
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Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
Airport type | Public / military | ||||||||||||||||||
Owner/Operator | Flughafen Köln/Bonn GmbH | ||||||||||||||||||
Serves | Cologne Bonn Region | ||||||||||||||||||
Location | Wahn, Porz, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany | ||||||||||||||||||
Opened | 18 July 1957 | ||||||||||||||||||
Hub for | |||||||||||||||||||
Operating base for | |||||||||||||||||||
Built | 1939 | ||||||||||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 92 m / 302 ft | ||||||||||||||||||
Coordinates | 50°51′57″N 7°8′34″E / 50.86583°N 7.14278°E | ||||||||||||||||||
Website | www | ||||||||||||||||||
Maps | |||||||||||||||||||
Airport map | |||||||||||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||||||||||
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Statistics (2022) | |||||||||||||||||||
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The airport is located in the district of Porz and is surrounded by Wahner Heide, a nature reserve. The airport is centrally located in the Cologne Bonn Region 12 km (7.5 mi; 6.5 nmi) southeast of the Cologne city centre and 16 km (9.9 mi; 8.6 nmi) northeast of Bonn. Cologne Bonn Airport is one of the country's few 24-hour airports and serves as a hub for Eurowings, FedEx Express[1] and UPS Airlines[2] as well as a focus city for several leisure and low-cost airlines. It is also a host of a training centre for the German (DLR) and European (EAC) astronaut programmes, part of the European Space Agency.
Cologne Bonn airport is only 49 km (30 mi; 26 nmi) south of larger Düsseldorf Airport, the main airport of the Rhine-Ruhr region, and also competes with Frankfurt Airport, Germany's largest international airport, which can be reached from Cologne within 47 minutes by the Intercity Express high-speed train. The airport is jointly owned by the City of Cologne (31.12%), the Federal Republic of Germany (30.94%), the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (30.94%), the City of Bonn (6.06%) and two counties: Rhein-Sieg-Kreis (0.59%) and Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis (0.35%).[8]
History
edit20th century
editIn 1938, the first airfield was built on site for the German Luftwaffe. After World War II the British military took over and expanded the airport (as RAF Wahn - B-119). A 1,866 m runway was built in this period.[9]
The following squadrons used RAF Wahn: 2 Squadron between 28 June 1948 and 15 September 1949 then again between 1 July 1953 and 28 October 1955,[10] 4 Squadron between 13 November 1947 and 1 March 1948 then the squadron alternating with RAF Lubeck until 19 September 1949,[11] 11 Squadron between 15 September 1948 and 17 September 1949,[12] 14 Squadron between 1 April 1946 and 16 September 1949,[13] 17 Squadron between 1 June 1956 and 3 April 1957,[14] 21 Squadron between 3 and 26 September 1946,[15] 68 Squadron between 1 January 1952 and 22 July 1957,[16] 69 Squadron between 31 March 1946 and 7 November 1947,[16] 87 Squadron between 1 January 1952 and 2 July 1957,[17] 98 Squadron between 15 March 1946 and 19 September 1949,[18] 107 Squadron between 3 September 1946 and 15 September 1948,[19] 128 Squadron between 11 and 31 March 1946,[20] 180 Squadron between 8 and 31 March 1946 &[21] 305 Squadron between 11 March and 15 October 1946.[22]
In 1950 the airport was opened for civilian air traffic to serve both Cologne and West Germany's then new capital, Bonn, superseding the former Cologne Butzweilerhof Airport.[9]
The first scheduled international route was London-Cologne/Bonn-Berlin operated by BEA, inaugurated on 1 January 1951.[9] A second and third runway was opened in 1954 and 1961 subsequently. That same year Lufthansa inaugurated the first scheduled intercontinental service from Cologne/Bonn to New York City.[9]
The new passenger terminal, which still exists today as Terminal 1, was inaugurated in 1970. The airport's passenger and freight facilities have been extended substantially during the 1970s.[9] In 1978, the airport handled more than 2 million passengers for the first time.[9]
Cologne Bonn Airport was chosen by United Parcel Service (UPS) in 1986 as the location for their European hub.[23] TNT Express followed in 1988.[9]
By 1990, the airport handled three million passengers per year.[9] In the mid-1990s the airport started another major expansion program. Several new parking lots, a new control tower and a second terminal were built, and in 2004 a new long-distance railway station connecting the airport with InterCityExpress trains was opened.[9]
Developments since the 2000s
editCoinciding with the start of several low-cost airlines in Germany, Cologne/Bonn opened new capacities. This enabled the airport to make competitive offers to the airlines. Consequently, Germanwings and TUIfly started operations from Cologne/Bonn as their hub in the fall of 2002. As a result, the number of passengers in 2003 rose by 43% compared to 2002. These airlines were joined by easyJet in late 2003 and Wizz Air in June 2006.
Also, the Canadian Forces began to use the airport as a staging area to move troops and supplies in support of humanitarian missions and possible anti-terrorism roles.[24]
In 2006, the Brazilian airline BRA provided a twice a week connection to Rio de Janeiro–Galeão, which was discontinued in April 2007 due to problems with the airline. Also in 2006, a daily transatlantic flight to New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport by Continental Airlines was established, operating with a Boeing 757-200. This route was discontinued on 4 September 2008 due to a reduction in passenger numbers.[25]
Low-cost carriers Ryanair and Norwegian Air Shuttle began service to Cologne/Bonn in May 2012. In April 2014, Ryanair announced the opening of their fifth German base at Cologne/Bonn Airport for October 2014.[26] In December 2014, Lufthansa announced it would base Eurowings' new long-haul operations at Cologne Bonn Airport with flights to Florida, Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean to start by the end of 2015.[27] Meanwhile, Condor cancelled their service to Varadero after only one season due to the expected competition.[28] In February 2018, Eurowings announced the relocation of all long-haul operations from Cologne consisting of four Airbus A330 aircraft to Düsseldorf Airport by late October 2018 leaving the airport without any long-haul passenger routes again.[29] In 2024, Wizz Air announced it would terminate all routes from Cologne/Bonn, which it had served for ten years.[30]
Facilities
editCologne Bonn Airport has two passenger terminals which are located directly beside each other.
Terminal 1
editThe older Terminal 1 is a 1970s building that sports large surfaces of bare concrete in its design. It features a u-shaped main building with shops, restaurants, check-in and service facilities and a visitors deck on its roof as well as the star-shaped piers B and C with five aircraft stands each plus a central airside hall between them added in 2004 with joint security-check facilities, more shops and restaurants as well as three additional stands. All ten stands at both piers feature jet bridges while the other three use walk-boarding. Also several bus-boarding stands are available at the apron. Terminal 1 is used by Eurowings, which occupy most of the landside check-in facilities, Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines.[31] Terminal 1 features its own direct connection to the railway station.
Terminal 2
editConstruction of Terminal 2 began in June 1997, and operations at the terminal commenced on 21 June 2000. It is located to the north of Terminal 1. Both feature separate check-in facilities but are connected through a landside walkway. As part of a plan-approval procedure the airport is currently seeking approval for building an airside connection between both terminals. Terminal 2 is a modern-style rectangular building made out of glass and steel which is equipped with eight stands with jet bridges as well as several stands for bus-boarding. It is used by several airlines such as Ryanair and Iran Air.[31] Terminal 2 is also directly connected to the airports' railway station via the basement level. The terminal hosts an interdenominational prayer room on its base level.[32]
Airlines and destinations
editPassenger
editThe following airlines offer regular scheduled and charter flights at Cologne Bonn Airport:[35]
Cargo
editCologne Bonn Airport is a major cargo hub in the world mainly due to its function as a hub for FedEx Express[1] and UPS Airlines,[2] which operates 140 flights per week at the airport alone.[73]
Military use
editThe German Air Force's Executive Transport Wing is based on the south-western side of the airport, adjacent to the Wahn Air Force Barracks. The military part of the airport is also used by the Canadian Forces as an operational support hub.[80]
Statistics
editPassengers | Movements | Freight (in t) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | 6,291,739 | 138,434 | 423,641 | |
2001 | 5,705,819 | 134,950 | 443,040 | |
2002 | 5,375,126 | 125,307 | 494,331 | |
2003 | 7,758,655 | 139,872 | 518,493 | |
2004 | 8,332,961 | 136,927 | 605,069 | |
2005 | 9,452,185 | 140,775 | 636,887 | |
2006 | 9,904,236 | 139,096 | 685,563 | |
2007 | 10,471,657 | 138,837 | 704,649 | |
2008 | 10,342,931 | 128,713 | 578,161 | |
2009 | 9,739,581 | 120,675 | 552,363 | |
2010 | 9,849,779 | 121,011 | 656,120 | |
2011 | 9,623,398 | 117,715 | 742,372 | |
2012 | 9,280,070 | 125,335 | 751,183 | |
2013 | 9,077,346 | 120,385 | 739,569 | |
2014 | 9,450,493 | 123,241 | 754,356 | |
2015 | 10,338,375 | 128,616 | 757,717 | |
2016 | 11,910,138 | 136,905 | 786,407 | |
2017 | 12,384,223 | 141,338 | 838,526 | |
2018 | 12,945,341 | 144,204 | 859,396 | |
2019 | 12,368,519 | 142,486 | 814,573 | |
2020 | 3,081,159 | 78,867 | 863,410 | |
2021 | 4,253,568 | 79,214 | 985,754 | |
2022 | 8,756,712 | 120,975 | 971,442 | |
Source: ADV German Airports Association[81] |
Ground transportation
editTrain
editCologne/Bonn Airport station is a four-track railway station on a loop off the Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed line that connects Cologne Bonn Airport to long-distance trains at least once an hour per direction, most of them ICE services. The station lies directly across both terminals under a large glass roof and features direct connections to the basement of Terminal 2 as well as the check-in area at Terminal 1-C. The S-Bahn line S 19 to Düren and regional train line RE 6 to Minden (Westfalen) connects the airport station with via Cologne Main Station. RB 27 and RE 8 between Mönchengladbach and Koblenz call at the airport station as well.[82]
Car
editThe airport has its own exit (named Flughafen) on motorway A59 which links it to the city centres of Cologne and Bonn as well as the Ruhrgebiet.[83]
Bus
editLocal bus lines also connect the airport with Cologne (route 161) and Bonn (route SB60).[83] On 28 October 2015, a new coach terminal opened and is used for remote bus services to other German cities and many other European countries.
Accidents and incidents
edit- On April 4, 1978, a Spantax Convair 990 landing at Cologne Bonn Airport forgot to pull out the landing gear and the aircraft slid over the runway, resulting in the right wing catching fire. Two fire-fighting vehicles from the airport fire service that happened to be in the immediate vicinity probably prevented casualties in this accident. All 146 people on board escaped unharmed.[84]
- On June 7, 1993, a Learjet 35A operated by Aero-Dienst crashed following a left engine failure at or near V2. The aircraft rolled to the left, contacted the ground beside the runway, levelled off, took off again and rolled left and inverted and impacted the ground. All four occupants were killed. Cause undetermined.[85]
See also
editReferences
editCitations
edit- ^ a b c flugrevue.de - "Five years FedEx hub in Cologne/Bonn" (German) 13 October 2015
- ^ a b c pressroom.ups.com - UPS Air Hub Cologne/Bonn Fact Sheet retrieved 4 July 2020
- ^ "ADV Monthly Traffic Report 12/2022" (PDF). adv.org. Arbeitsgemeinschaft Deutscher Verkehrsflughäfen e.V. 13 February 2023. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ "AIP VFR online". dfs.de. DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Sommerflugplan 2015: Sieben neue Ziele ab Flughafen Köln/Bonn". airliners.de. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
- ^ Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Cologne Bonn Airport Facts and Figures". Retrieved 10 October 2023.
- ^ Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Unternehmensführung der Flughafen Köln/Bonn GmbH". Koeln-bonn-airport.de. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i koeln-bonn-airport.de - "History" (German) retrieved 24 November 2022
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 23.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 24.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 27.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 28.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 30.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 31.
- ^ a b Jefford 1988, p. 46.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 51.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 53.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 55.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 59.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 65.
- ^ Jefford 1988, p. 85.
- ^ ksta.de - "UPS base Cologne - over night in the entire world" (German) 13 March 2010
- ^ Steven Chase. "MacKay secures German staging base for post-Afghan missions". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
- ^ "United Airlines – Airline Tickets, Travel Deals and Flights". www.continental.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2009. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "Ryanair eröffnet zum Winter Basis am Flughafen Köln-Bonn". airliners.de. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
- ^ UBM Information Ltd. 2015 (3 December 2014). "Eurowings to Launch Long-Haul from Cologne under Lufthansa 'Wings' Project". Routesonline. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Billigflüge: Köln im Zentrum der Schlacht – aeroTELEGRAPH". aeroTELEGRAPH. 14 March 2015.
- ^ aero.de – "Eurowings moves A330 from Cologne to Düsseldorf" Archived 14 June 2018 at the Wayback Machine (German) 1 February 2018
- ^ aerotelegraph.com (German) 6 September 2024
- ^ a b Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Orientierung am Airport, Wegweiser Köln Bonn Airport". Koeln-bonn-airport.de. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
- ^ "Prayer Room Airport Cologne / Bonn". Architizer. 28 May 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "Direct flights from Cologne Bonn Airport (CGN)". FlightConnections. 1 September 2024.
- ^ "Flight destinations". Cologne Bonn Airport. 1 September 2024.
- ^ Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Flight Destinations, Travel Destinations – Cologne Bonn Airport". Retrieved 28 October 2020.
- ^ "Aegean returns to Cologne/Bonn Airport from Athens". 27 April 2022.
- ^ "AEGEAN AIRLINES NS23 INTERNATIONAL SERVICE UPDATE – 25SEP22".
- ^ "Air Arabia Maroc bringt Reisende nach Tanger". 26 June 2023.
- ^ "AIR CAIRO NW24 EUROPE NETWORK ADDITIONS – 22AUG24". aeroroutes.com. 23 August 2024.
- ^ "Niš outlines planned new subsidised routes for 2022". 29 October 2021.
- ^ a b "AJet NS24 Additional Flight Number Changes". Aeroroutes.
- ^ "Austrian NW24 Europe Frequency Changes – 26MAY24". Aeroroutes.
- ^ "British Airways - Information Page".
- ^ "British Airways NW24 Heathrow – Europe Frequency Changes – 27OCT24". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
- ^ Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Aktuelles".
- ^ a b c d "CORENDON AIRLINES NW22 SCHEDULED SERVICE ADJUSTMENT – 20OCT22". aeroroutes.com. 20 October 2022.
- ^ a b c "10 Ağustos'ta Adana Şakirpaşa Havalimanı kapatılıyor! Uçuşlar yeni havalimanına aktarılacak". 3 August 2024.
- ^ "Winter 2022: Corendon Europe legt weitere Ferienstrecken ab Deutschland auf". 21 April 2022.
- ^ "Corendon Airlines Europe Adds Cologne – Tangier in 3Q24".
- ^ "Eurowings NS24 Network Additions – 30NOV23". AeroRoutes. 30 November 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
- ^ Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Pressemitteilungen".
- ^ "Eurowings muss in Dubai im nächsten Jahr auch am al Maktoum Airport landen". 19 May 2024.
- ^ "Eurowings Launches Jeddah; Expands Dubai in NW24".
- ^ "Eurowings flies to more destinations in summer 2022 than ever before - Eurowings".
- ^ a b c "Eurowings NS25 Network Additions – 01DEC24". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
- ^ "EUROWINGS NW22 NORTH AFRICA SERVICE ADDITIONS". Aeroroutes. 18 July 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ^ "Eurowings with new routes from Berlin, Düsseldorf and Cologne/Bonn". 7 December 2022.
- ^ "Service".
- ^ a b c d "Cologne/Bonn: Leav Aviation starts scheduled flights". 12 May 2023.
- ^ "Marabu Airlines Adds Cologne Service In NW24". AeroRoutes. 16 July 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
- ^ a b "NOUVELAIR TUNISIE NS23 NETWORK ADDITIONS".
- ^ "Pegasus Airlines flies from Cologne/Bonn to Gaziantep". 24 June 2024.
- ^ "Pegasus NS23 New Routes Summary – 09JAN23".
- ^ "Ryanair NW22 Network Additions Summary – 09DEC22". Aeroroutes.
- ^ "Winter 2023/24: Ryanair legt wieder Marokko-Flüge ab Wien auf". 24 August 2023.
- ^ "Ryanair Moves Additional Routes to Ryanair UK in NS23". Aeroroutes.
- ^ "Ryanair".
- ^ "Ryanair NW23 Network Changes – 17SEP23".
- ^ "Smartwings adds Germany - Abu Dhabi regular charters from mid-Oct 2023". AeroRoutes. 18 August 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
- ^ Liu, Jim (3 September 2020). "SunExpress 01-19SEP20 International operations as of 30AUG20". routesonline.com.
- ^ "SunExpress Adds ETF Airways Boeing 737 Service in Aug/Sep 2024".
- ^ "SunExpress NS24 Network Expansion – 24SEP23".
- ^ a b airlineroutemaps.com - UPS United Parcel Service retrieved 4 July 2020
- ^ cargojet.com - Route Network retrieved 24 February 2024
- ^ conyeair.com - Our services retrieved 24 February 2024
- ^ "EGYPTAIR". Archived from the original on 12 April 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
- ^ airlineroutemaps.com - FedEx retrieved 15 July 2020
- ^ "MNG Airlines met Airbus A330-300P2F van Keulen naar New York | Luchtvaartnieuws". 24 November 2021.
- ^ turkishcargo.com – Flight Schedule retrieved 16 November 2019
- ^ "Operational support hubs". Government of Canada. 21 August 2018. Archived from the original on 5 February 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
- ^ "Downloadbibliothek". Flughafenverband ADV (in German). Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ a b Gmbh, Flughafen Köln/Bonn. "Anreise mit dem PKW". Retrieved 4 June 2015.
- ^ "Uralter Hase". Der Spiegel (in German). 9 April 1978. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ Accident description for D-COCO at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on September 19, 2023.
Bibliography
edit- Jefford, C. G. (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
External links
editMedia related to Cologne Bonn Airport at Wikimedia Commons