Sde Dov Airport
Sde Dov Airport שדה דב مطار سدي دوف | |||||||||||
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AMSL 42 ft / 13 m | | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 32°6′38.99″N 34°46′46.01″E / 32.1108306°N 34.7794472°E | ||||||||||
Website | www.iaa.gov.il | ||||||||||
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Statistics (2007) | |||||||||||
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Sde Dov Airport (
History
Early history
In 1937, the mayor of Tel Aviv,
In the
After the war
Following the 1948 war, the Arab orchards to the east of Tel Aviv were opened for development, and the military started using the Sde Dov airport on a regular basis. The airport regained its commercial operations, initially serving domestic flights, mostly to single customers, on
The government set up a second committee in 1968 which suggested that the old east–west runway be closed and the airport's area reduced, allowing for development to the east of the airport. They suggested that the old east-west runway be replaced by a new runway in the sea, adjacent to the beach. The old runway was closed, and a high density upper-middle income neighborhood was built to the east of the airport, although the new runway was never constructed due to the high cost involved.[5]
As the new residential area suffered from aircraft noise, residents joined in the demand that the airport be relocated. Despite this, the number of flights to the airport increased as the newly formed Israel Airports Authority strived to reduce congestion at Ben Gurion Airport by shifting all domestic turbo-prop flights to Sde Dov. Once again, the only feasible alternative proposed at this point was to build a runway in the sea and again, the high cost of this project meant that it never happened. This was a large issue in the area during the whole of the 1980s.[5]
Recent history and closure
The early 1990s saw a rapid rise in land values in the Tel Aviv area following the massive immigration wave from the former Soviet Union and the rapid economic growth fueled by Israel's subsequent hi-tech boom. This brought the issue of relocation back to light. Despite this, however, in 1997, Sde Dov was declared an International Airport for private flights.[9]
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The issue remained unresolved until late 2006 when it was announced that the airport would be vacated to make way for residential redevelopment.[11] The plan to close the airport was strongly opposed by the Tel Aviv and Eilat municipalities, and its implementation was postponed numerous times until the airport finally closed on 30 June 2019.[2] By 31 July 2019, a Caterpillar 950M loader started the first phase of removing the runway and within days the runway was unrecognizable.
The airport prior to closure
Sde Dov Airport mostly handled domestic flights within Israel, as well as general aviation activity and limited international flights, mostly to nearby Cyprus. The airport had two terminals. The IAF took up about 40% of overall movements (take-offs and landings), and used the airport as a base for some of its operations, as well as a convenient hub for military and government passenger traffic. Due to its location in the centre of Israel, air-force and civilian pilots alike crossed the airspace controlled by Sde Dov's air traffic control tower from north to south and vice versa in order to reach their destination, without landing at Sde Dov. This significantly increased the air traffic density above and around the airport, and efforts were made to keep "crossing traffic" away from the approach and departure patterns in order to minimise their effect on air traffic safety at Sde Dov. The airport had seven check-in desks and 45 aircraft stands.[9]
The former airport site after closure
In early 2020, the Israeli Defense Ministry completed demolition of the old airport structures ahead of redevelopment. The former
Airlines and destinations
As of July 2019, the airport no longer serves any traffic. Prior to its closure, both
See also
- Meigs Field – an airport near downtown Chicago whose closure was likewise controversial
- Eilat Airport – closed the same year as Sde Dov for similar reasons
References
- ^ "Scheduled Flights". Israel Airports Authority. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
- ^ a b KEINON, HERB; DIMOLFETTA, DAVID (30 June 2019). "NETANYAHU: TOO LATE TO STOP CLOSURE OF SDE DOV AIRPORT". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
- ^ "Sde Dov to close Sunday at midnight". Globes. 30 June 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
- ^ Petersburg, Ofer (3 July 2007). "Tel Aviv airport to make way for luxury project". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
- ^ a b c d "The Sde Dov Airport". Hebrew University. Archived from the original on 2008-03-30. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
- ^ Huldai: Sde Dov airport is here to stay for at least 15 years, Haaretz Archived 2011-01-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ISBN 1-84176-294-6.
- ISBN 0-517-58790-4.
- ^ a b "Sde Dov (Dov Hoz) Airport". Airports Worldwide. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
- ^ "Sde Dov Airport Statistics". Retrieved 2016-01-19.
- ^ "Sde Dov to be vacated, state gets half of Big Bloc". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
- ^ Gross, Judah Ari (10 February 2020). "Sde Dov airport emptied, paving way for building of luxury high-rises". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
- ^ "Sde Dov outline plan approved". Globes. 22 July 2020.
- ^ Rolnik, Guy (29 September 2021). "Homes That Only Israel's 'Landed Gentry' Can Buy". Haaretz. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
External links