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Belgrade - Nikola Tesla International Airport ( Serbian , '''''Аеродром Београд - Никола Тесла''''') is Serbia And Montenegro 's busiest Airport , also knwon as '''Surčin''' (Сурчин), after a nearby Belgrade suburb. Nikola Tesla Airport is situated 12 kilometers west of central Belgrade , in Belgrade's Municipality Of Surčin , surrounded by Vojvodina 's fertile lowlands. Passengers on the right hand side of the planes descending from the east have a spectacular view of downtown Belgrade, especially districts of Čukarica and Novi Beograd. Weather seldom diverts aircraft, however, when landing in Belgrade is unsafe, the planes are diverted to Niš , which is 230 Km southward. The International Terminal is currently under reconstruction, resulting in international departures being handled by smaller Terminal 1, in normal conditions used for domestic traffic only. However the international arrivals hall at the newly renovated Terminal 2 is complete offering the latest in modern technology, security and comfort. All international arrivals use gates of Terminal 2. National flag carrier Jat Airways uses Belgrade Nikola Tesla as it's hub airport. VIP airline Air Pink and Prince Aviation are also based in Belgrade while new airline Master Airways also calls Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport its home. NEWS Open skies agreement The Open Skies agreement has been signed on the part of the government, meaning that from January 1, 2007 all airlines that wish to land in Serbia will be able to do so. Until now, Serbian flag carrier Jat Airways had the right to reject any airline they wanted, and in order to enjoy competition-free market, many airlines were denied landing rights in the country. Some of the known rejected airlines are Adria Airways and Emirates . This agreement would also open the skies to Low-cost Carrier s from Europe, such as Ryanair and EasyJet . Construction and reconstruction Due to reconstruction of international terminal (T2) at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, outbound international traffic is being handled by domestic terminal (T1) - there are enough check-in counters to avoid long queues. International arrivals moved to new Terminal 2 on December 26, 2005, after series of delays. Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport will construct the largest cargo terminal in Eastern Europe. Company DynCorp International will carry out the works. Construction of the cargo terminal cost has apparently gone up from the originally reported 60-80 million euro to 250 million euro. Construction will start in Spring 2006. Record number of passengers In the first fourteen weeks of 2006 number of passengers at Airport " Nikola Tesla " increased by one-fifth compared to the same period last year. The fact that in winter period its services were used by record passenger number in the 21st Century , indicates that Belgrade airport is fastly becoming the leader in the region. Services of Belgrade airport, in the first fourteen weeks of 2006 were used by 430.276 passengers or by average 30.734 passengers per week, while in the same period last year that number was lower, in total 358.532 passengers, which is an average of 25.609 passengers per week. Total number of aircraft movements has also increased, in the the first fourteen weeks it was 10.331 landings and takeoffs, average of 738 per week, while in the same period last year it was 8.334 or average of 595 landings and takeoffs per week. AIRLINES & DESTINATIONS The following scheduled passanger airlines use Nikola Tesla Airport (as of April 2006 ):
GROUND TRANSPORTATION By car Belgrade Airport is connected to Belgrade - Zagreb highway (E-70) via nearby interchange. For southwestern parts of Belgrade, such as Železnik , Sremčica or Obrenovac , or if final destination is western Serbia, travellers should take Zagreb exit and just two kilometers from the airport another turn to Obrenovac which will lead over newly built bridge over Sava river. All other directions should head towards Belgrade - just before entering the city, travellers to Vojvodina should take Novi Sad exit. Drive from the airport to central Belgrade shouldn't take more than 20 minutes. Speed limit on this section of motorway is only 80km/h! There are numerous car rental agencies on duty at Arrivals Hall at the airport. Prices are just above European average. Most cars have Manual Transmission s. By bus
By taxi Taxi fare to central Belgrade should be around 600 din. Using taxi services for destinations outside metropolitan Belgrade is unwise, as prices are unreasonably high. All licensed taxi drivers have badge and oval blue licence plate with serial number, as well as city of Belgrade Coat of Arms on the roof. Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport has a "Taxi Mafia" who hang around at International Arrivals exits to tout for tourist business going into the city centre. They typically demand about 2000 dinars (€23). This is three times the normal metered fare of 600 dinars (€7). You can avoid these touts by walking over to Domestic Departures and hailing one of the many taxis dropping people off. For further information on travel options to and from the airport, see the Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport website HISTORY Belgrade's first international airport was opened in March 1927 and it was in the place of today's Novi Beograd . From February 1928 planes of the first local company "Aeroput" started to take off from a new airport. Airport had four grassy runways which were between 1,100 and 2,900 meters long. A modern terminal building was built in 1931, and in 1936 equipment for poor visibility landing was built in. Besides Aeroput, Air France, Lufthansa, KLM, British Airways and companies from Italy, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Poland also used the airport until the Second World War. Starting from April 1941 German occupation forces used this airport. During 1944 the Allies bombed it, and in October of same year German army destroyed remaining facilities while retreating. Belgrade Airport after WW2 After reconstruction of the ruined facilities and installation was completed, from October 1944 until the end of the 1945 airport was used for the Soviet and the Yugoslav aviation war operations as well as for transport of the wounded. Civil transport by the Air Force cargo planes via this airport was renewed at the end of 1945. At the beginning 1947 companies JAT and JUSTA took over domestic and international traffic, and from 1948 the first Western companies' planes started to land on this airport. Constant traffic increase and passenger jet planes appearance demanded significant airport enlargement. In the meantime there was a plan to build New Belgrade settlement on this location, and so it was decided that a new international airport should be constructed near Surčin village. Last flight from the old airport was at the beginning of 1964. in 1962 ]] Construction of a new airport During the first years of the development of postwar Belgrade, construction of the modern airport became a social and economic priority. Basic studies and engineering research started in 1947, and became part of the 1950 General City Plan. This document of undeniable historic importance for Belgrade clearly defined the future or air traffic and the role of Belgrade's Airport within the Yugoslav and the international air network. The new location for the airport was on the Surcin plateau 12 kilometers from Belgrade's city centre. Thanks to the original planners' vision, two important preconditions for the airport development were fulfilled: a suitable location was chosen, which met all the navigational, meteorological, construction, technical, and traffic requirements; and the special needs for the airport's long-term development were established. The Serbia City Planning Bureau experts, with the architect Nikola Dobrović at the helm, made the preliminary plans for the new airport. The development and realization of the idea was taken over from 1953 onwards by the Civil Aviation Department (later Federal Department for Civil Aviation) whose experts, with engineer Miloš Lukić as a team leader, finished the general airport plan for one runway, appropriate taxiways, and a terminal complex in 1957. Building of the new airport started in April 1958 and lasted till April 28 , 1962 , when it was officially opened by President Josip Broz Tito . During that period a 3,000 meter long runway was built with the parallel taxiway and appropriate concrete aprons for sixteen planes. The passenger terminal building occupied an area of 8,000 square meters. Cargo storage was also built as well as a technical block with the air traffic control tower and other accompanying facilities. Modern navigational equipment was installed, so earning the airport the highest international classification according to the International Civil Aviation Organisation {Link without Title} . Runway Upgrade to CAT IIIb The runway is now CAT IIIb, upgraded in October 2005, as part of a large renovation project. CAT IIIb is the latest runway system giving aircrafts the security of landing during fog and storms. New name - Nikola Tesla A countrywide petition was signed on changing the name of the airport to ''Belgrade Nikola Tesla International Airport''. Nikola Tesla was a Serbian inventor, physicist, mechanical engineer and electrical engineer of profound genius. The proposal was accepted by Aerodrom Beograd P.E., state-owned airport authority, and received approval by Ministry of Capital Investment, and finally Serbian Government on February 2, 2006. {Link without Title} SOURCES
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