Minsk-1 Airport

This article is about the former minor airport of Minsk. For the current international airport, see Minsk National Airport.

Minsk-1 Airport (IATA: MHP, ICAO: UMMM) was^[1] an airport located just a few kilometres south from the centre of Minsk in Belarus. It served as the main airport for Minsk from 1933 to 1982, when Minsk-2 Airport was commissioned. From 1982 until closure in 2015 it served as a secondary airport.

Minsk-1 Airport Аэрапорт Мінск-1 Аэропорт Минск-1
Minsk-1 Airport in 2010, before closure
IATA: MHP ICAO: UMMM
Summary
Airport type	Defunct
Serves	Minsk, Belarus
Opened	1933 (1933)
Closed	23 December 2015 (2015-12-23)
Elevation AMSL	748 ft / 228 m
Coordinates	53°51′52″N 27°32′23″E
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 12/30 6,562 2,000 Asphalt (Closed)

History

Minsk-1 was built in 1933^[2] roughly five kilometres to the south of the historical centre.^[3] It was the major airport of Minsk until the new airport Minsk-2, now named Minsk National Airport, opened in 1982.

After 1982, it mainly served domestic routes in Belarus and short-haul routes to Moscow, Kyiv and Kaliningrad. Minsk-1 was closed in December 2015 because of the noise pollution in the surrounding residential areas.^{[citation needed]} The land of the airport is currently being redeveloped for residential and commercial real estate, branded as Minsk-City, as well as the new Zelenaluzhskaya line of the Minsk Metro.^[4]

In February 2006 a decision was made to transfer the Minsk aircraft repair plant situated on the Minsk-1 site out of the city line. In 2018 Aircraft Repair Plant Avia407 completed its move to the new Minsk National Airport.^[5][6] 320 ha of freed land will be transferred to the city authorities for real estate development. Commercial flights were scheduled until 26 October 2012 when flights to Moscow-Vnukovo operated by UTair Aviation moved to the larger Minsk National Airport.^[7][8]

The airport officially shut down on 23 December 2015.^[1]

The airport terminal and the Tower building still exists today. The Tower building has been converted into a government office.

References

1. rusaviainsider.com - Belarusian airports see traffic growth in 2015 29 January 2016
2. Ranter, Harro. "Minsk-1 International Airport profile". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
3. "Map of Minsk-1 airport in relation to historical center" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
4. "Что-то пошло не так. Как даунтаун "Минск-Сити" (он же "Минск-Мир") лишился небоскребов и строится совсем не таким, каким задумывался" [Something Went Wrong: How Minsk City Lost Sky Scrapers and Turned Out Not Like Planned] (in Russian). Realty Onliner.by. 4 February 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
5. "Economy - First phase of aircraft repair plant near National Airport Minsk to be built in 2015". BelTA News. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
6. "Minsk Aircraft Repair Plant history". Minsk Civil Aviation Plant No. 407 (OJSC). Retrieved 24 January 2025.
7. Плохотниченко, Юрий (26 October 2012). "UTair меняет аэропорт в Минске". Travel.ru. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
8. "Международный "Аэропорт Минск-1"". Расписание полётов. Retrieved 24 February 2012.

External links

Media related to Minsk-1 Airport at Wikimedia Commons

• Airport information for UMMM / MHP – Minsk, Belarus (Minsk-1) at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
• NOAA/NWS current weather observations
• ASN Accident history for UMMM