Catania–Fontanarossa Airport

Catania–Fontanarossa Airport Aeroporto di Catania-Fontanarossa
IATA: CTA – ICAO: LICC
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	SAC
Location	Catania
Focus city for	Alitalia Mistral Air Ryanair
Elevation AMSL	39 ft / 12 m
Coordinates
Website	aeroporto.catania.it
Map
Location within Sicily
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 08/26 2,436 7,989 Asphalt
Statistics (2015)
Passengers 7,105,487 Passenger change 2014– 2015 -2.7% Aircraft movements 54,988 Movements change 2014–2015 -8.2%
Source: Italian AIP at EUROCONTROL Statistics from Assaeroporti

Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (Italian: aeroporto internazionale Vincenzo Bellini di Catania-Fontanarossacode: it is deprecated , English: Catania International Airport) (IATA: CTA, ICAO: LICC) also named as Vincenzo Bellini Airport, is an international airport 2.3 NM (4.3 km; 2.6 mi) southwest of Catania, the second largest city on the Italian island of Sicily. It is named after the opera composer Vincenzo Bellini who was born in Catania.

It is the busiest airport in Sicily and the 6th busiest in Italy with 7.304.012 passengers in 2014. Major airlines such as Alitalia, Lufthansa and Air Berlin offer services here and connect numerous European destinations such as Rome, Munich and Berlin, while low cost airlines such as easyJet and Ryanair offer extensive flights to many leisure destinations.

History

Early years

Catania Airport's history dates back to 1924, when it was the region's very first airport. During World War II it was seized by the Allies during the Sicily Campaign and used by the United States Army Air Forces as a military airfield. Twelfth Air Force used the airport as a combat airfield, stationing the 340th Bombardment Group, which flew B-25 Mitchells from 27 Aug to 19 Nov 1943. In addition, the HQ, 51st Troop Carrier Wing used the airport from 29 Sep 1943 to 29 Jun 1944. Various transport units used the airport for the rest of the war, afterward it was turned back over to civil authorities.

By the late 1940s, it was clear that the airport was fast running out of space and it was deemed necessary to relocate and in 1950, the new bigger and improved Catania Airport opened for business.

After 20 years of unexpected growth and high passengers levels, in 1981 it was once again necessary to restructure the airport to cope with demand.

Development since the 2000s

In order to cope with the increasing passengers figures, a new terminal, equipped with 22 gates and 6 loading bridges, opened on 8 May 2007 replacing the old facilities. The current "investment programme" has ensured that Catania Fontanarossa Airport continues to look forward and plan for growth over the next ten years, implementing a whole new infrastructure and making many additions, including a panoramic restaurant, a new airside runway and further office space.

Ryanair started to fly to Catania in 2013 but announced only one route to Catania while also starting operations with 3 routes to Comiso Airport, a newly opened in 2013 airport located approximately 100 km from Catania, near the city of Ragusa.

In August 2014, Air One announced the closure of its operations including the shutdown of its Catania base on 30 September 2014.

Airlines and destinations

The airport's apron with the Etna volcano visible in the background

Airlines	Destinations
Aegean Airlines operated by Olympic Air	Seasonal: Athens
Aer Lingus	Seasonal: Dublin
Air Berlin	Berlin–Tegel, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, Zürich
Air Malta	Malta, Munich
Air Serbia	Seasonal charter: Belgrade
Air VIA	Seasonal charter: Munich
Air Vallée	Brindisi, Pescara, Rimini
AlbaStar	Seasonal charter: Naples, Tenerife–South
Alitalia	Bologna, Milan–Linate, Rome–Fiumicino Seasonal charter: Tel Aviv–Ben Gurion
Alitalia operated by Darwin Airline	Naples
Alitalia operated by Mistral Air	Lampedusa
Austrian Airlines	Seasonal: Vienna Seasonal charter: Innsbruck
Belavia	Seasonal charter: Minsk-National
Blue Air	Bucharest, Turin Seasonal: Bacău
British Airways	Seasonal: London–Gatwick
Brussels Airlines	Seasonal: Brussels
Bulgaria Air	Seasonal charter: Sofia
easyJet	Amsterdam, London–Gatwick, London–Luton, Manchester, Milan–Malpensa, Naples, Paris–Charles de Gaulle Seasonal: Bristol, Hamburg, Lyon, Berlin–Schönefeld (begins 28 June 2016)
easyJet Switzerland	Geneva Seasonal: Basel/Mulhouse
Edelweiss Air	Zürich
Europe Airpost	Seasonal charter: Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes
Eurowings	Hamburg
Finnair	Seasonal: Helsinki
Germania	Seasonal charter: Berlin–Schönefeld, Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig/Halle, Rostock
Germanwings	Cologne/Bonn, Stuttgart Seasonal: Düsseldorf, Hannover
Helvetic Airways	Seasonal: Bern
HOP!	Seasonal charter: Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Iberia	Seasonal: Madrid Seasonal charter: Valladolid
Iberia operated by Air Nostrum	Seasonal: Madrid
I-Fly	Seasonal charter: Moscow–Vnukovo
Jetairfly	Seasonal: Brussels
Lufthansa	Munich
Luxair	Seasonal: Luxembourg
Meridiana	Milan–Linate, Naples Seasonal: Olbia, Milan–Malpensa (begins 4 June 2016)
Mistral Air	Seasonal charter: Mostar, Sharm el-Sheikh, Sofia, Split, Lourdes/Tarbes, Tel Aviv–Ben Gurion
Neos	Seasonal charter: Heraklion
Niki	Seasonal: Vienna Seasonal charter: Graz, Salzburg
Norwegian Air Shuttle	Seasonal: Copenhagen, London–Gatwick, Madrid, Oslo–Gardermoen, Stockholm–Arlanda
Pacific Coastal Airlines	Seasonal charter: Brussels
Ryanair	Bergamo, Bologna, Eindhoven, Madrid, Pisa, Rome–Fiumicino, Treviso, Turin, Milan–Malpensa (begins 30 October 2016), Berlin–Schönefeld (begins 2 September 2016) Seasonal: Marseille
Scandjet	Seasonal charter: Ängelholm-Helsingborg, Kristianstad
SmartLynx Airlines	Seasonal charter: Tallinn, Vilnius
SmartWings operated by Travel Service	Seasonal: Prague
Sun D'Or operated by El Al	Seasonal charter: Tel Aviv–Ben Gurion
Swiss International Air Lines	Seasonal: Geneva, Zürich
Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium	Seasonal charter: Brussels
Thomson Airways	Seasonal charter: Birmingham, Bristol, London–Gatwick, Manchester
Transavia	Seasonal: Amsterdam, Munich (begins 31 May 2016)
Transavia France	Seasonal: Paris–Orly
Travel Service Polska	Seasonal charter: Warsaw–Chopin
TUIfly Nordic	Seasonal charter: Copenhagen, Helsinki, Oslo–Gardermoen, Stockholm–Arlanda
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul–Atatürk
Ural Airlines	Seasonal: Moscow–Domodedovo
Volotea	Bari, Genoa, Venice–Marco Polo, Verona Seasonal: Ancona, Cagliari, Malta
Vueling	Amsterdam, Barcelona, Florence, Paris–Orly, Rome–Fiumicino Seasonal: Heraklion, Rhodes, Split
VIM Airlines	Seasonal charter: Moscow–Domodedovo
Wizz Air	Bucharest, Budapest, Iași (begins 3 July 2016) Seasonal: Warsaw–Chopin
White Airways	Seasonal charter: Paris–Charles de Gaulle
XL Airways France	Seasonal: Lille

Ground transportation

Car

The airport is conveniently located close to the A19 motorway, which links Catania with Palermo and central Sicily, while the European route E45 runs to Syracuse in the south. Passengers can also take a taxi from the terminal building into the city or beyond, with popular locations including nearby Syracuse, Taormina, and the westerly resorts of Palermo and Marsala.

Bus

A shuttle bus service provides transport into Catania city centre and the Central Train Station, while scheduled bus services to other parts of the island are also available direct from the airport.

See also

• Palermo Airport Falcone e Borsellino – also known as Punta Raisi Airport, another of Sicily's international airports
• Trapani Birgi Airport Vincenzo Florio – another of Sicily's international airports
• Comiso Airport Vincenzo Magliocco – another of Sicily's international airports

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website
• Current weather for LICC at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for CTA at Aviation Safety Network