Trapani–Birgi Airport

Trapani-Birgi Airport

Aeroporto civile Vincenzo Florio
Aeroporto militare Livio Bassi
Summary
Airport typeMilitary/public
ServesTrapani, Italy
Focus city forAlbaStar
Elevation AMSL25 ft / 8 m
Coordinates37°54′43″N 012°29′36″E / 37.91194°N 12.49333°E / 37.91194; 12.49333
Websiteairgest.it
Map
TPS is located in Sicily
TPS
TPS
Location of the airport in Sicily
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
13R/31L 2.695 8.841 Bitumen
13L/31R 2.620 8.595 Bitumen
Statistics (2023)
Passengers1,332,368
Passenger change 22-23Increase 49.42%
Aircraft movements10,666
Movements change 22-23Increase 19.60%
Source: Italian AIP at EUROCONTROL[1]
Statistics from Airgest.it[2]

Trapani–Birgi Airport (IATA: TPS, ICAO: LICT) (Italian: Aeroporto Vincenzo Florio di Trapani-Birgi), is a military air base and public airport serving Trapani, in Sicily, Italy. Located between Trapani and Marsala, it is one of the five civil airports in Sicily. In 2023, 1,332,368 passengers passed through the airport, making it the third-busiest airport in Sicily.[3] The air base of the Aeronautica Militare in named after the aviator Livio Bassi. The civil airport is named after the Sicilian industrialist Vincenzo Florio Sr.

Overview

The airport is located 8 NM (15 km; 9.2 mi) south[1] of Trapani, and opened in the early 1960s. After a long period of inactivity the airport was relaunched by the Province of Trapani in 2003, and now hosts several flights, mainly low-cost connections.

History

Inaugurated in 1964 as a regional airport operating very few flights, Trapani–Birgi became even less important in the 1990s, during which only a flight to Pantelleria, Palermo and Rome was operated.

The airport was relaunched in 2003 by the Province of Trapani and grew in size after Ryanair started to use it as its main hub to Sicily, bringing several new international flights to and from Trapani. The airport has consequently been recognised as instrumental for the tourism-related economy of Western Sicily.

Italian Air Force

Eurofighter Typhoon of the Aeronautica Militare Italiana in Trapani

The military airfield, inaugurated in 1961, is named after the Italian aviator Livio Bassi. The airport is a base for the "37th Fighter Wing" of the Italian Air Force with the Eurofighter Typhoon, and for the "82nd CSAR" (Combat Search and Rescue) with the helicopters AgustaWestland AW139.[4]

The airfield is one of the four forward operating bases (FOBs) used by the NATO Airborne Early Warning and Control Force based at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen in Geilenkirchen, Germany. The airport gained international attention during Operation Unified Protector in 2011 when NATO aircraft were based there during military intervention in the Libyan Civil War.

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Trapani–Birgi Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
Aeroitalia Cuneo[5] Parma[6]
DAT Pantelleria[7]
GoTo Fly Forlì, Verona
Ryanair Bergamo, Bologna,[8] Malta, Naples, Pisa, Rome–Fiumicino,[9] Turin, Venice[10]
Seasonal: Billund, Bordeaux, Bratislava, Charleroi, Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, Katowice, London–Stansted, Manchester, Milan–Malpensa, Pescara, Porto,[11] Seville, Toulouse, Warsaw–Modlin, Weeze

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic at TPS airport. See Wikidata query.

This table does not include passengers in transit. Ryanair discontinued most of its flights from Trapani airport in October 2017, resulting in a significant reduction in the number of passengers using the airport.[12]

Year Domestic
passengers		 International
passengers		 Total
passengers		 Var %
prev. year
2023 924,174 400,964 1,332,368 Increase49.42
2022 637,212 252,980 891,670 Increase108.4
2021 366,841 56,894 427,893 Increase131.9
2020 169,165 12,343 185,581 Decrease54.9
2019 322,218 80,732 411,437 Decrease14.4
2018 366,801 103,324 480,524 Decrease62.8
2017 923,284 366,801 1,292,957 Decrease13.4
2016 1,151,515 339,385 1,493,519 Decrease5.9
2015 1,195,377 389,966 1,586,992 Decrease0.7
2014 1,159,837 436,705 1,598,571 Decrease14.9
2013 1,279,972 596,828 1,878,557 Increase19.0
2012[13] 1,110,532 465,937 1,578,753 Increase7.36
2011 918,027 550,769 1,470,508 Decrease12.6
2010 1,024,755 656,573 1,682,991 Increase57.4
2009 757,555 301,308 1,069,528 Increase100.5
2008 342,025 186,774 533,310 Increase5.2
2007 432,943 72,946 507,185 Increase62.3
2006 305,895 4,802 312,459 Decrease19.8
2005 385,612 2,194 389,735 Decrease5.2
2004 382,867 19,071 410,898 Increase66.7
2003 224,663 2,281 246,474 Increase393.6
2002 39,175 3,494 49,932 Decrease20.0
2001 44,702 5,732 62,430 Increase82.3
2000 n/a n/a 34,321 Steady

aData from Assaeroporti.[14] Figures from 2013 onwards from Airgest.it[15].

Transport

In 2023, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana announced plans for the construction of a new railway station to serve the airport on the Trapani-Castelvetrano-Palermo line.[16] The station, officially named "Vincenzo Florio", is expected to be operational by 2026, providing a direct 45-minute train link to Palermo Airport.[17]

City Bus company
Agrigento (180 km away) Salvatore Lumia
Borizzo Airfield Azienda Siciliana Trasporti(it)[18]
Castelvetrano Salvatore Lumia
Marsala Autoservizi Salemi, Azienda Siciliana Trasporti(it)
Mazara del Vallo Azienda Siciliana Trasporti(it)
Menfi Salvatore Lumia
Montallegro Salvatore Lumia
Paceco Azienda Siciliana Trasporti(it)
Palermo Autoservizi Salemi, Terravision
Porto Empedocle Salvatore Lumia
Realmonte Salvatore Lumia
Ribera Salvatore Lumia
Sciacca Salvatore Lumia
Siculiana Salvatore Lumia
Trapani Azienda Siciliana Trasporti(it)

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "EAD Basic - Error Page".
  2. ^ "Dati di Traffico". Airgest (in Italian). 8 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Statistiche Dati di Traffico 2023 - Assaeroporti" (PDF). Assaeroporti. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Il portale dell'Aeronautica Militare - 37th Wing".
  5. ^ Liu, Jim (18 September 2024). "Aeroitalia NW24 Network Additions". Aeroroutes.com. Retrieved 29 December 2024.
  6. ^ > "Aeroitalia returns to Trapani". Tp24.
  7. ^ "Denmark's DAT wins PSO contract in southern Italy". ch-aviation.com. 13 April 2018. Retrieved 29 December 2024.
  8. ^ "Ryanair May – Oct 2023 Italy Frequency Variations – 14MAY23". Aeroroutes.
  9. ^ "Ryanair May – Oct 2023 Italy Frequency Variations – 14MAY23". Aeroroutes.
  10. ^ "News for Airlines, Airports and the Aviation Industry | CAPA".
  11. ^ "Ryanair NS23 Network Additions Summary – 26MAR23". Aeroroutes.
  12. ^ "Adesso è ufficiale: Ryanair scarica Trapani". 27 February 2018.
  13. ^ "Aeroporto Trapani - sito ufficiale - Aeroporto Trapani-Birgi Vincenzo Florio - Airgest Dati di traffico". Archived from the original on 2 February 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  14. ^ Assaeroporti.it
  15. ^ "Dati di Traffico". Airgest (in Italian). 8 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  16. ^ "GRUPPO FS - RFI lancia gara per la nuova fermata "Vincenzo Florio"". www.rfi.it (in Italian). Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  17. ^ Tp24.it (29 December 2023). "Entro il 2026 la fermata - stazione dell'aeroporto di Birgi". TP24.it (in Italian). Retrieved 15 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ "AST Spa – Struttura Territoriale Occidentale – Sede di Trapani – Orario Invernale". Azienda Siciliana Trasporti – www.aziendasicilianatrasporti.it. Archived from the original on 27 April 2012. Retrieved 11 May 2012.

Media related to Trapani-Birgi Airport at Wikimedia Commons