Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport (airport code
HEL)
is, unsurprisingly enough, the
international airport of
Helsinki,
Finland. The name is a bit of a bureaucratic
boondoggle: the airport
primarily serves
Helsinki but is located in the neighboring county of
Vantaa, so the airport's name has both elements and Finns universally
refer to it as "Helsinki-Vantaa", much to the dismay of the
language police. (To put this into perspective, imagine
Newark Airport being called
New York-New Jersey,
and people saying things like "I'll head over to New York-New Jersey to
pick up Uncle Bob tonight". Then again,
sekicho notes that
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport also exists...)
History
The airport was originally built just in time for the 1952 Helsinki
Olympics, since Helsinki's existing airport at Malmi was too small
and could not be expanded. It took over all international operations
on October 26, 1952, becoming Finnair's new hub, and after that it's
been growth all the way.
The second runway was opened in 1956 and a new passenger terminal
in 1969, with an
expansion in 1983. In 1993 Terminal 1 (as it is now called) for domestic flights was
opened, and in 1996 the international Terminal 2 was expanded and connected
to Terminal 1, with yet another expansion in 1999. 2002 saw the
opening of the third runway, allowing the airport to do more than 48
operations per hour and setting the stage for yet more expansion.
The airport currently handles 10 million passengers per year, quite a
respectable sum considering that Finland's population is only 5 million!
Present
Despite all this growth, Helsinki-Vantaa remains a nice little airport that
consistently ranks at the top of all airport satisfaction surveys,
including three "Best Airport in the World" awards. While stylish
Scandinavian design, logical layout and copious central heating
probably don't hurt, I suspect a large reason behind the favorable
reviews is that Helsinki is outside most main routes and passenger volume
is thus far below the JFKs, Schiphols and Naritas of this world,
and even the neighboring airports of Kastrup (Copenhagen) and
Arlanda (Stockholm) are considerably bigger. All international
flights share Terminal 1, and Terminal 2 for domestic flights is only
a short walk away, allowing convenient transfers. In terms of facilities,
the airport offers the usual array of tax-free shops, executive lounges
and overpriced cafes; in other words, the same as every other
international airport on the planet.
Getting There
The airport is located in what was once the village of Seutula
in the county of Vantaa, some 30 minutes from the center of Helsinki
by bus and less by taxi. HKL bus 615 does the trip for €3,
Finnair's shuttle bus charges €5 but takes you directly to
the doorstep of many popular hotels. If there are many of you, you're in a hurry or you have a lot of stuff to carry, the Airport Taxi minicab service may be an option, since for a flat fee of €18 it will take 1-4 people anywhere in the Helsinki metro area.
A long-awaited new railway to the
airport is finally
under construction, but is not expected to be operational until 2008
at the earliest.
Feed Your Autopilot
IATA code: HEL
ICAO code: EFHK
Coordinates: 060°19'02" N / 024°57'48" E
Runways: RWY 1 04R/22L, RWY 2 15/33, RWY 3 04L/22R
Instrument Landing System: CAT III
References
http://www.helsinki-vantaa.fi/
http://www.whel.de/Aerospace/airport_rwy_info_1.htm
Personal experience