Riga International Airport

Riga International Airport Starptautiskā lidosta "Rīga"
IATA: RIX – ICAO: EVRA
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Government of Latvia
Operator	TAV Airports
Serves	Riga, Latvia
Location	Mārupe municipality
Hub for	airBaltic SmartLynx Airlines Wizz Air
Elevation AMSL	36 ft / 11 m
Coordinates	56°55′25″N 023°58′16″E / 56.92361°N 23.97111°ECoordinates: 56°55′25″N 023°58′16″E / 56.92361°N 23.97111°E
Website	riga-airport.com
Map
RIX Location of the airport by Riga
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 18/36 3,200 10,500 Concrete/Asphalt
Statistics (2015)
Number of Passengers 5,162,149 Aircraft movements 68,078
Source (excluding statistics): AIP at EUROCONTROL[1]

Riga International Airport (Latvian: Starptautiskā lidosta "Rīga"; IATA: RIX, ICAO: EVRA) is the international airport of Riga, the capital of Latvia, and the largest airport in the Baltic states with direct flights to over 80 destinations in 30 countries. It serves as a hub for airBaltic, SmartLynx Airlines, RAF-Avia, Vip Avia and Inversija and as one of the base airports for Wizz Air. Latvian national carrier airBaltic is the biggest in the airport, followed by Ryanair.

The airport is located in the Mārupe municipality^[2] 5.4 NM (10.0 km; 6.2 mi) west^[1] of Riga and is a state-owned joint-stock company, with the owner of all shares being the government of Latvia. The holder of the state capital share is Latvia's Ministry of Transport.

History

The airport was built in 1973 as an alternative to Spilve Airport, which had become outdated.

Renovation and modernization of the airport was completed in 2001, coinciding with the 800th anniversary of the founding of the city. In 2006 and 2016, the new north terminal extensions were opened. The airport has three terminals: A & B for Schengen and C for both Schengen and non-Schengen departures. Arrivals 1, in terminal A, handles the Schengen arrivals, while Arrivals 2, in terminal C, handles the non-Schengen arrivals.^[3] A maintenance, repair and overhaul facility was opened in the autumn of 2006, to be run as a joint venture between two local companies: Concors and SR-Technik. The airport has ILS CAT II.^[4]

The airport is owned by the Republic of Latvia via the Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Latvia.^[5]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights to and from Riga:^[6]

Airlines	Destinations
Aegean Airlines	Seasonal: Athens
Aeroflot	Moscow-Sheremetyevo
airBaltic	Aberdeen (begins 2 May 2017),[7] Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin-Tegel, Billund, Brussels, Budapest, Copenhagen, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Geneva (begins 4 May 2017), Gothenburg (begins 1 June 2017), Hamburg, Helsinki, Kiev-Boryspil, Larnaca, London-Gatwick, Milan-Malpensa, Minsk, Moscow-Sheremetyevo, Munich, Oslo-Gardermoen, Palanga, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Prague, Rome-Fiumicino, Saint Petersburg, Stavanger (begins 2 May 2017), Stockholm-Arlanda, Tallinn, Tampere (begins 26 March 2017), Tbilisi, Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion, Turku, Vienna, Vilnius, Warsaw-Chopin, Zürich Seasonal: Athens, Baku, Burgas, Catania (begins 4 May 2017), Dubrovnik, Nice, Odessa (resumes 26 March 2017), Olbia, Palma de Mallorca, Poprad-Tatry, Reykjavík-Keflavík, Rhodes, Rijeka, Salzburg, Thessaloniki, Venice, Verona Charter: Burgas, Dalaman, Heraklion
Belavia	Minsk
Ellinair	Seasonal: Thessaloniki Seasonal charter: Corfu
Finnair operated by Nordic Regional Airlines	Helsinki
LOT Polish Airlines	Warsaw-Chopin
Lufthansa	Frankfurt
Norwegian Air Shuttle	Copenhagen, Oslo-Gardermoen, Stockholm-Arlanda, Trondheim
Ryanair	Bergamo, Berlin-Schönefeld, Bremen, Charleroi, Cologne/Bonn, Dublin, East Midlands, Glasgow, Hahn, Leeds/Bradford, London-Stansted, Manchester
Scandinavian Airlines	Copenhagen (begins 26 March 2017),[8] Stockholm-Arlanda
SmartLynx Airlines	Charter: Antalya, Bergamo, Burgas, Heraklion, Hurghada, Monastir, Rijeka, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharm el-Sheikh, Tenerife-South, Varna
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul-Atatürk
Ukraine International Airlines	Kiev-Boryspil
UTair Aviation	Moscow-Vnukovo
Uzbekistan Airways	New York-JFK, Tashkent
Vueling	Seasonal: Barcelona
Wizz Air	Barcelona, Bergen, Doncaster/Sheffield, Dortmund, Eindhoven, Liverpool, London-Luton, Sandefjord, Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion

Statistics

Route statistics

Busiest routes from Riga (2015)^[9]

Rank	City	Passengers	Airlines
1	London	499,424	airBaltic, Ryanair, Wizz Air
2	Moscow	373,843	Aeroflot, airBaltic, UTair Aviation
3	Frankfurt	293,631	airBaltic, Lufthansa, Ryanair
4	Oslo	283,759	airBaltic, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Ryanair, Wizz Air
5	Helsinki	251,851	airBaltic, Finnair
6	Stockholm	208,134	airBaltic, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Scandinavian
7	Tallinn	186,831	airBaltic
8	Vilnius	165,668	airBaltic
9	Brussels	160,392	airBaltic, Ryanair
10	Copenhagen	147,453	airBaltic, Norwegian Air Shuttle

Annual passenger numbers at Riga Airport (millions)

Updated: 1 December 2016

Ground transportation

Check-in

Bus

Riga Airport is accessible by bus line 22, operated by Rīgas Satiksme, which runs between Riga city centre and the airport. Moreover, there are international bus connections from the airport to cities in Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, Russia and Belarus.

Car

Riga Airport can be reached by car via the highway P133 which connects the airport with European route E22. The airport has 3 car parking areas, with ~1500 parking spaces, offering both short- and long-term parking.

Other facilities

• AirBaltic has its head office on the property of Riga Airport.^[2]
• The Latvian Civil Aviation Agency also has its head office at Riga Airport.^[10]

Incidents and accidents

• On 17 September 2016 an airBaltic Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 NextGen aircraft made an emergency landing on the runway of Riga International Airport without its nose landing gear deployed. The plane was carrying 63 passengers and 4 crewmembers and was forced to return to Riga International Airport following issues with its front chassis. The runway was closed between 10:26 and 15:55 as a safety precaution following an emergency landing. Seven inbound flights and four outbound flights were cancelled, 17 flights were diverted to Tallinn Airport and Kaunas Airport and others were delayed. The aircraft involved was YL-BAI and the flight BT 641 was scheduled to fly from Riga to Zürich Airport. No injuries were reported.^[11][12][13]

See also

• List of the busiest airports in Europe
• List of largest airports in the Baltic states
• List of the busiest airports in the former USSR
• List of airports in Latvia
• Transportation in Latvia
• Rīgas Satiksme (Riga Public Transport)

References

1. EAD Basic
2. "airBaltic in Riga." AirBaltic. Retrieved on 16 January 2010. "Air Baltic Corporation AS Registration number: 40003245752 ADMINISTRATION RIGA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT Marupes county, LV-1053, Latvia"
3. Riga Airport Plan
4. "Operational Facilities". Retrieved 3 June 2015.
5. "Airport at a glance". Riga Airport Website.
6. riga-airport.com - Flight schedules retrieved 16 October 2016
7. http://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/269187/air-baltic-plans-new-routes-in-s17/
8. Liu, Jim (11 October 2016). "SAS adds new European routes in S17". Routesonline. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
10. "Contacts." Latvian Civil Aviation Agency. Retrieved on 19 January 2012. "Civil aviation agency Address: Airport "Riga", LV-1053, Latvia"
11. "airBaltic flight makes emergency landing at Riga airport". The Baltic Course. 17 September 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
12. "17 flights diverted today due to closed runway at Riga Airport". The Baltic Times. 17 September 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
13. "Incidents ar 'airBaltic' lidmašīnu ietekmējis 1341 kompānijas pasažieri" (in Latvian). www.delfi.lv. 17 September 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.

External links

Media related to Riga International Airport at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website
• RIX Marks the Spot for Expansion
• Current weather for EVRA at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for RIX at Aviation Safety Network