Førde Airport, Øyrane
Førde Airport, Øyrane Førde lufthavn, Øyrane | |||||||||||
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| Coordinates | 61°27′28″N 005°50′02″E / 61.45778°N 5.83389°E | ||||||||||
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  FDE Location in Norway  FDE FDE (Norway) | |||||||||||
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Førde Airport, Øyrane (
History
Large-scale construction of airports in Norway started in the 1950s, largely funded by the
A committee, led by
The regional airports only received a simple terminal and an 800-meter (2,600 ft) runway. The first such airports were opened in Helgeland in 1968.[1] Førde was declared as a "center of growth" in 1965, which resulted in a series of public agencies and industrial enterprises being built in the town. The selection of Førde was tied to its central location within Sogn og Fjordane, as it was within a two-hour drive from nearly the entire county. Immediately after the appointment, the Industrial Development Corporation of Norway started establishing an industrial facility at Øyrane. An industrial park opened 1968, which included a shipyard.[3] The surplus earthwork from dredging the port facilities was used to fill in land for a runway.[1] The process went so quickly that the municipal council had not made a formal decision to build the airport before the groundwork was completed.[4]
Andreas Hjelmeland established Førdefly in 1966 as the second airline based in Sogn og Fjordane. Førdefly never received a concession to operate scheduled services; instead it flew a daily charter flight to Bergen Airport. The airline established a water aerodrome at Øyrane at the mouth of the river
From before the airport was built it was evident that the location was not well suited, and planning of an alternative location for the airport began in 1968. The main concern was that the airport lacked an instrument landing system and could thus only be used during daylight and good weather. The first alternative location proposal was for Langelandsåsen, but was discarded by the Civil Aviation Administration because of the poor weather conditions. Later proposals were Espelandsmyrene and then Alværa on the Sognefjord. By 1972, the CAA had concluded that there probably was not a suitable location for an airport near Førde and recommended that the town instead by served by Florø Airport, located 70 kilometers (43 mi) away.[1]
Bringelandsåsen, located 16 kilometers (10 mi) south of town, in the neighboring municipality of Gaular, was proposed by the CAA in 1974. Plans were developed, and in 1983 the Ministry of Transport and Communications recommended that Øyrane be closed and replaced with an all-new airport at Bringeland. Construction started in 1985 and the new airport opened on 31 August 1986, taking over all scheduled traffic.[1] The helicopter operator Airlift was established in 1986 and was based at Øyrane until 1988, when it also moved to Bringeland.[6] The terminal building at Øyrane remains, including the control tower and wharfs, although the runway and taxiway have been demolished to make way for industry. A small part of the runway close to the marina remains as a parking lot.[1]
Facilities
Førde Airport, Øyrane was located in the industrial area Øyrane, immediately west of the town center of Førde.[4] The terminal facilities were located on the shore of the river of Jølstra and consisted of a control tower, a passenger terminal, a hangar for Førdefly and a wharf used by the seaplanes. The airport was owned by Førde Municipality.[1] It consisted of a single 790-by-30-meter (2,592 by 98 ft) asphalt runway aligned 14–32 and with an 85-meter (279 ft) stopway on each end. The runway length was limited by the fjord to the north and by National Road 5 to the south. From the northern end of the runway, a taxiway ran due south about 400 meters (1,300 ft) to the terminal.[7]
The airport had very poor operating conditions. Whenever an aircraft was to land, the cranes at the shipyard had to be moved to allow sufficient clearance. Conversely, the airport could not be used when ships were launched. The industrial buildings were located just next to the taxiway. The control tower was located such that it did not have visual sight of the entire runway. The surrounding terrain, consisting of deep fjords, mountains and a town, made it impossible to install an instrument landing system. This again meant that the airport could only be served during daylight.[1] The airport never received a permanent operating license.[4]
Airlines and destinations
Øyrane was served by Widerøe, which held the permission to operate all subsidized routes on the regional network. Widerøe served the airport with its fleet of 19-passenger de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft and provided flights to Bergen Airport, Flesland in multi-legged flights which included other towns in Sogn og Fjordane.[8] Airlift and Førdefly were also based at the airport for periods, although neither operated any scheduled services.[5][6]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Lufthavnens historie" (in Norwegian). Avinor. Archived from the original on 27 February 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- ^ ISBN 82-7416-021-5.
- Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Archivedfrom the original on 8 December 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- ^ Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Archivedfrom the original on 18 September 2015. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- ^ Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Archivedfrom the original on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
- ^ Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the originalon 9 July 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- ^ ENFD 16-1/APT. Jeppesen. 8 February 1980.
- ^ Arnesen, Odd (1984). På grønne vinger over Norge (in Norwegian). Widerøe's Flyveselskap. pp. 117–124.