Kalamata International Airport

Kalamata International Airport
"Captain Vassilis Constantakopoulos"
Κρατικός Αερολιμένας Καλαμάτας
Summary
Airport typePublic / Military
OwnerGreek state
OperatorHCAA
LocationKalamata, Peloponnese, Greece
Elevation AMSL26 ft (7.9 m)
Coordinates37°04′06″N 22°01′32″E / 37.06833°N 22.02556°E / 37.06833; 22.02556
Map
KLX is located in Greece
KLX
KLX
Location within Greece
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
17R/35L 8,868 2,703 Asphalt
17L/35R 9,436 2,876 (now taxiway)
Statistics (2018)
Passengers278,961
Passenger traffic changeIncrease 0.9%
Aircraft movements2,601
Aircraft movements changeDecrease 23.2%
Runway Statistics

Kalamata International Airport (Greek: Κρατικός Αερολιμένας Καλαμάτας) (IATA: KLX, ICAO: LGKL) "Captain Vassilis Constantakopoulos" is an airport in the city of Kalamata, Greece. It mainly receives flights during the summer. In March 2013, Aegean Airlines opened a base in the airport.

Overview

Civilian airport

The airport is located between Kalamata and Messini on the EO82 road (Pylos – Kalamata – Sparta) and west of the train tracks on the Pamisos River plain. The runway is about 2.7 km long and runs from north to south from the highway north to the plain. The terminal lies to the east and is accessed by the EO82, which leads to the A7 motorway and the EO7 road.

Military air base

There is a military base of the Hellenic Air Force and since 1976, an air-training center, the Instrument Flight Training Center (gr.Κέντρο Εκπαίδευσης Ενόργανης Πτήσης) of the 120th Air Training Wing to the west of the runway. Since 2021, the military air base houses the International Flight Training Center after a collaboration of Elbit Systems and HAF.[AI-retrieved source] The air base uses the same runway as civilian aircraft.[citation needed]

History

Kalamata International Airport was opened in 1959. Charter flights began to operate out of the airport in 1986 and a new terminal was built in 1991. The same year Hellenic Civil Aviation took over as operator of the airport. In 2012 the airport was renamed after Vassilis C. Constantakopoulos.[citation needed]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Kalamata Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
Aegean Airlines Thessaloniki
Seasonal: Athens, Heraklion, Munich, Stockholm–Arlanda
Air France Seasonal: Paris–Charles de Gaulle
arkia Seasonal: Tel Aviv
Austrian Airlines Seasonal: Vienna
British Airways Seasonal: London–Gatwick
Condor Seasonal: Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich
Discover Airlines Seasonal: Frankfurt
easyJet Seasonal: London–Gatwick, Manchester
Edelweiss Air Seasonal: Zurich
Eurowings Seasonal: Düsseldorf
Jet2.com Seasonal: Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, London–Gatwick, London–Stansted, Manchester
Marathon Airlines Seasonal charter: Innsbruck
Ryanair Seasonal: Katowice, Milan Bergamo, Vienna
Scandinavian Airlines Seasonal: Stockholm–Arlanda
Swiss International Air Lines Seasonal: Geneva
Transavia Seasonal: Amsterdam, Paris–Orly
Wizz Air Tirana
Seasonal: Budapest

Statistics

PassengersYear100,000150,000200,000250,000300,000350,000400,000201220142016201820202022PassengersAnnual passenger traffic

Accidents and incidents

Ground Transport

Travelling to and from Kalamata Airport by bus is convenient, with good connections between the Airport and Kalamata. The bus pick up and drop off point is located close to the terminal building. Bus rides between the airport and Kalamata take 20 – 25 minutes.

The airport has been criticised for the lack of public transport.[better source needed] The only way to reach the airport is by car, taxi or bus. The neighboring railway line to Messini and Kalamata was shut down in 2011.

See also

References

  1. ↑ LGKL/JEPPESEN KALAMATA, GREECE, Jeppesen aerodrome charts
  2. ↑ "KALAMATA AIRPORT "CAPTAIN VASSILIS CONSTANTAKOPOULOS"". ypa.gr. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  3. ↑ "Δελτία τύπου – About Aegean".
  4. ↑ Κέντρο Εκπαίδευσης Ενόργανης Πτήσης - Πολεμική Αεροπορία [Instrument Flight Training Center - Air Force]. Hellenic Air Force (in Greek). Archived from the original on 20 June 2024. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
  5. ↑ "Greek Airfield Bombed". The Mercury. Vol. CLVIII, no. 22, 686. Tasmania. 17 August 1943. p. 2. Retrieved 25 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ↑ Αεροπορία, Πολεμική (22 November 2024). "Επίσκεψη Αντιπροσωπείας της Πολεμικής Αεροπορίας της Κροατίας στην 120ΠΕΑ - Πολεμική Αεροπορία". Hellenic Air Force (in Greek). Archived from the original on 24 November 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  7. ↑ "Deal signed with Israel for Kalamata flight training center". Kathimerini. 17 April 2021. Archived from the original on 15 August 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  8. ↑ "Aegean: Πτήσεις ξανά στη γραμμή Θεσσαλονίκη – Καλαμάτα". 4 October 2023.
  9. ↑ Shabat, Jay (5 October 2023). "Greece's Aegean Airlines Targets Year-Round Visitors with Winter Expansion". Airline Weekly. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  10. ↑ "Αεροπορική σύνδεση Καλαμάτα-Κρήτη από 1η Ιουνίου-Πτήσεις από και προς Ηράκλειο-Σύνδεση με Αθήνα και πάλι από 4 Απριλίου". 24 January 2024.
  11. ↑ Orban, André (9 December 2022). "AEGEAN enhances its winter network (14 new routes) and records yet another strong month in international passenger traffic". Aviation24.be. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  12. ↑ "AEGEAN to Launch Flights to Tel Aviv from Ioannina, Chania and Kalamata". GTP Headlines. 27 January 2023.
  13. ↑ "Air France to Expand Network in Summer 2024". 19 March 2024. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  14. ↑ Wrobel, Sharon (23 February 2025). "Arkia extends Tel Aviv-New York route until at least October, adds new destinations". The Times of Israel. The Times of Israel. ISSN 0040-7909. Retrieved 23 February 2025.
  15. ↑ Stefan, Teodor (24 December 2025). "Austrian increases flights to top destinations in summer 2026 – Aeronews Global". Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  16. ↑ "CAPA". News for Airlines, Airports and the Aviation Industry. 10 December 2025. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  17. 1 2 3 "Kalamata Airport: Start of the tourist season tomorrow, with flights from Zurich and Munich". Tornos News. 26 February 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  18. 1 2 "Kalamata Airport to Connect to 22 Destinations via 31 Routes in 2026 | GTP Headlines". GTP Headlines. 25 February 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  19. 1 2 Lukas, Oliver (26 February 2026). "Kalamata Airport Adds 22 Destinations and 31 Routes for 2026". Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  20. ↑ Caulder, Simon (12 November 2025). "Jet2 to start flying from Gatwick next year – adding to fierce competition at the hub". The Independent. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  21. ↑ Molyneaux, Ian (20 November 2024). "New easyJet routes include first ever sub-Saharan service". Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  22. ↑ Casey, David (16 January 2026). "Routes & Networks Latest: Rolling Daily Updates (W/C Jan. 12, 2026)". Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  23. 1 2 3 "Jet2 Extends Summer 2026 season to Kalamata and Chania". 23 January 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  24. ↑ "Jet2.com and Jet2holidays announce summer sale for 2025". 6 October 2023.
  25. ↑ "Jet2 'to launch raft of new routes' for summer '26".
  26. ↑ "Jet2 to introduce Gatwick flights and holidays". Travel Weekly (in Portuguese). 31 March 2025. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
  27. ↑ "Marathon Airlines assumes Idealtours-charter". aviation.direct (in German). 7 December 2022.
  28. 1 2 3 "Αεροδρόμιο Καλαμάτας: Πάνω από 20 προορισμούς του εξωτερικού έχουν ανακοινώσει ήδη οι εταιρείες". ΕΦΗΜΕΡΙΔΑ ΘΑΡΡΟΣ (in Greek). 19 February 2023. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  29. ↑ "Kalamata will connect with Heraklion, Stockholm and Paris this summer Greek City Times". Greek City Times. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  30. ↑ "Swiss is cutting its flight schedule during the summer vacations - these destinations are affected". 23 June 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  31. ↑ "Transavia Adds Paris-Thessaloniki Flights for Winter 2025-2026 | GTP Headlines". GTP Headlines. 16 July 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  32. ↑ Lassetter, Jon (9 March 2026). "New Routes of the Day (2 March 2026): Wizz Air's new routes from Tirana". Air Service One. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  33. ↑ "Αεροπορική σύνδεση με Τίρανα και Βουδαπέστη - Απευθείας πτήσεις το 2026 από Καλαμάτα". 9 January 2026.
  34. ↑ "Hijacking description NAMC YS-11 registration unknown, Athens". Aviation Safety Network.
  35. ↑ "British plane-spotters face spying charges.(Home news)", The Times (London, England), NI Syndication Limited: 13, 12 November 2001, ISSN 0140-0460, ...Byline: Philip Pank TWELVE plane-spotters from Britain face possible imprisonment in Greece after they were arrested and charged with spying at a military airbase south of Athens...
  36. ↑ Kalamata International Airport - Kalamatas, Messinia, Greece - Airport, Landmark & historical place, Facebook, 2016 Review:...Not even close to being an international airport.Poor building and infrastructure. Poor transport. Only taxi transport. The local buses have an unknown timetable. No info desk, no bus stop except a sign sprayed on the road, no shade at 40 celsius. Poor is being kind to this excuse of an airport...
  37. ↑ "Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority - Our Airports - Kalamata Airport "Captain Vassilis Constantakopoulos"". Retrieved 17 August 2023.
  38. ↑ "RAILWAY LINE MILI NAFPLIOU - KALAMATA (LEFKTRON MEGALOPOLIS & ASPROCHOMA - MESSINI)". greekrailtickets.gr. Archived from the original on 30 June 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  39. ↑ "Peloponnese: Modernized network without trains" Πελοπόννησος: Εκσυγχρονισμένο δίκτυο χωρίς τρένα (in Greek). To Vima. 12 April 2011. Archived from the original on 20 November 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Πλην του Προαστιακού της Πάτρας, της γραμμής Κατάκολο – Ολυμπία και του Οδοντωτού Σιδηροδρόμου, το υπόλοιπο δίκτυο του ΟΣΕ έχει απονεκρωθεί και σχεδόν το σύνολο του μετρικού, τροχαίου υλικού βρίσκεται αποθηκευμένο σε διάφορα αμαξοστάσια και εγκαταστάσεις του οργανισμού. [Apart from the Patras Suburban Railway, the Katakolo–Olympia line, and the Rack Railway, the rest of the OSE network has been deactivated, and almost the entirety of the narrow-gauge rolling stock is stored in various depots and facilities of the organization.]