Abkhazia is famous for its natural resources and low prices. For many years now, it has been a budgetary health resort, hospitably hosting vacationers of medium and small incomes. Another important advantage is that you do not need a visa to enter the country.
Rest here is much cheaper than on the Crimean peninsula or in Sochi, and the conditions are in no way inferior famous resorts. Here you can enjoy picturesque landscapes mountains, lakes, rivers and seas. History buffs will find many interesting monuments of antiquity and will be able to admire the most beautiful architectural structures. The spiritual heritage of the republic is represented by numerous monasteries.
Almost everyone who wants to visit this beautiful region has a question: "What is the best way to get there? Which airport in Abkhazia accepts tourists?"
Operating airports of Abkhazia
Unfortunately, today there is no way to get to Abkhazia by direct flight. For several reasons, the airways of the republic cannot receive passenger flights. tourist destination. However, there are still airports on the territory of Abkhazia that will soon have such functions.
Babushara
This is the airport of Abkhazia, which accepts civilian flights exclusively of a state nature. The airport is at the stage of international certification and is not yet intended to receive passenger flights. Aircraft of Russian peacekeepers, UN aviation and helicopters land on its runway, making domestic flights. This is a strategically important airport in Abkhazia, but it is used in extreme cases. The distance from it to the capital is only 18 km. The 3.64 km long runway accepts almost all types of civil aircraft, the weight of which does not exceed 125 tons. Location on the coastal territory of the Colchis lowland allows you to receive aircraft from several directions. This airport of Abkhazia is more profitable than the airport in Sochi.
Passengers are accepted in the old building, which was opened back in the 1960s. In the 80s, a new airport terminal began its existence. In the mid-80s, it was decided to lengthen the runway, and now they can land on it. civil aircraft airbus class. The first flight was made by an Il-86 airbus with the Moscow-Sukhumi-Moscow route. After a successful landing, the number of flights was increased to 3-4 per day.
In Soviet times, the airport in Sukhumi was used as an alternate site by such cities as Baku, Sochi, Simferopol, Krasnodar, Rostov, Yerevan and Mineralnye Vody.
The capacity of the terminal during the peak summer time is about ten thousand passengers.
The largest airport in Abkhazia got its name from the village of the same name Babushara, near which it is located. Perhaps, after receiving international certification, the airport will be able to receive tourist flights.
Bamboura
Quite quickly you can get a taxi that will take you to the border area. After passing customs control and paperwork already on the territory of Abkhazia, you can use the services of private drivers or fixed-route taxis and get to the necessary resort, for example, to Sukhumi, Gagra or Pitsunda.
The country's leadership is still working to improve the international transport interchange. Perhaps, in the near future, tourists will have the opportunity to travel to Abkhazia by air.
Babushara Airport serves the capital of Abkhazia, the city of Sukhum. It is located in the village of Babushara and bears the name of V.G. Ardzinba. Unfortunately, on this moment the airport is not in operation, but it is planned to start its work soon.
There is one runway on the territory of the airfield, its length is 3640 meters. The airport is able to receive such aircraft as Il-86, Tu-154 and lighter ones.
Abkhazian Airlines cooperates with the airport, and UN aviation is also based here.
The problem with the launch of the airport is that the ICAO organization cannot recognize it as international until the Georgian authorities give permission for this. Currently, the airport is sometimes used for flights of the first persons of Abkhazia and Russia.
Story
The history of the airport in Sukhumi begins in the 60s of the last century. Then a new airfield and air terminal was opened. In the 1970s, the runway was reconstructed and the pavement thickness was increased. In the following decades, the airport opened a new passenger terminal and the runway has also been lengthened.
The new runway of the airport made it possible to receive the Il-86 aircraft, which at that time carried out regular flights on the Sukhum-Moscow route. In addition, a regular helicopter service was established from the airport between other cities of Abkhazia. Passenger traffic reached 6 thousand people a year.
The airport was closed in 1993, immediately after the conflict between Georgia and Abkhazia. Several aircraft were abandoned on the territory of the airfield. The runway was also mined.
After clearing the airport area of mines, locals began to use free land for agricultural needs.
In 2008, during the war in South Ossetia, several landings were made on the territory of the airport by Russian military aircraft, which were delivered to the territory of Abkhazia military equipment and landings. In the same year, a passenger plane landed at the airfield, on board of which was the Russian Foreign Minister.
Hi all. I continue to publish my reports from Abkhazia. Before us is an abandoned airport in the village of Babushara near Sukhum.
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The inscription is frightening, but we are not afraid, just like cows are not afraid. Everything is stuffed inside. 
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The history of Sukhumi Airport dates back to the mid-1960s, when the terminal building was built. In the late 1970s, the thickness of the concrete pavement was increased, which made it possible to receive a heavier Il-76 aircraft. In the 1980s, a new airport terminal was built, and runway lengthened, which made it possible to receive the Il-86 aircraft.
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Before the war, the airport was an important transport hub; flights were made here to many cities of the USSR, and helicopters flew to various settlements of Abkhazia.
Passenger turnover in summer was up to 5 thousand passengers per day, in winter up to 1 thousand.
Sukhumi airport is capable of receiving any passenger aircraft weighing up to 125 tons of airbus class. The aerodrome of the 1st class has one artificial runway with a length of 3.64 km. (one of the longest in the CIS) with a reinforced concrete pavement and the possibility of landing from 2 sides, which distinguishes it from the airport in Sochi. 
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Unfortunately, I did not find old photos. But there is this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HwRyUT2Yts The video does a great job of showing what it was like. Look at the photos and videos and compare.
The old building did not immediately become so spent. It was even renovated in 1998-2000. It began to be used for its intended purpose, for some time a restaurant operated in it. In 1999, for the glazing of the walls of the second building of the Rostov-on-Don air terminal, which was going to use the Babusharsky airport as a spare, he supplied a batch of glass, but in July 2000 a tornado passed over the airfield, which knocked out several of these glasses. Georgia closed air space Abkhazia aircraft a bypass route was created at a distance of 43-47 km from the Abkhazian coast. The airport is excluded from the current international collections of aeronautical information.
On August 11, 2008, during the war in South Ossetia, for the first time in 15 years, Russian military transport aircraft, more than three dozen Il-76s, landed at the airport, delivering paratroopers and military equipment. On September 14, 2008, the first airliner in 15 years landed at the airport - the plane of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. 
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The new airport building is currently renovated and looks new and attractive. The renovation was completed in 2011, and flights were supposed to start in 2013, but, unfortunately, the airport is not working. The fact is that the international organization civil aviation ICAO does not recognize Sukhum airport as an international airport, as it recognizes the territorial integrity of Georgia; The sky over Abkhazia cannot be opened without the permission of the Georgian authorities, as this, according to ICAO, violates international standards. ICAO canceled the Sukhum airport code and removed information about it from its documents starting from the 12th edition of August 2006. Since then, the provision of the code (the renewal of its validity) has not been recorded. The airport is closed for international traffic. The member airlines of the international air union IATA do not operate flights to Abkhazia. To avoid IATA sanctions Russian airlines also do not fly to Sukhum.
All this is sad enough. Now the building is completely new, but there are no crowds of passengers buying tickets and getting off the plane .... And only the Air Force of Abkhazia is based at the airport (more precisely, what is left of it), as well as small kekepusniks flying to Pskhu and private excursion aircraft. 
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Once upon a time, backpacks were traveling along this conveyor and passengers were picking them up ... 
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Fly with Aeroflot. 
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Once upon a time people used to walk here. There is even a sense of deja vu. I don't know, but for some reason the pictures of people walking around here, eating ice cream, reading newspapers and queuing for tickets are clearly visible to me. 
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Boarding gate. 
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This is where the luggage was kept. 
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What is at the airport? 
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Cemetery of technology 
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Helicopter of the Air Force of Abkhazia. Will not take off again, no propeller. 
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These seem to be flying. 
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Light attack aircraft L-39. 
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And here is the famous Yak-40 - the plane of President Eduard Shevardnadze, who flew during the war in Sukhumi in 1993. I could not fly away on it, because. planes were shot down and so he left him at the airport. 
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Made with "
In the very first year of work, the first serious test came - a fire on board the aircraft and the need for it to land with one engine. For the impeccable performance of her duties in an emergency, Nadezhda Kurchenko was awarded a nominal watch. Nadezhda had many plans - entering a law school, marrying her school friend Vladimir Borisenko. In May 1970, Nadezhda came on vacation to her relatives. We agreed that the wedding would be played on November or new year holidays. And on October 15, the girl went on her last flight.Immediately after the hijacking in the USSR, sparing TASS reports appeared: “On October 15, an An-24 civil air fleet aircraft made a regular flight from the city of Batumi to Sukhumi. Two armed bandits, using weapons against the crew of the plane, forced the plane to change its route and land on Turkish territory in the city of Trabzon. During a fight with the bandits, the flight attendant of the plane was killed, who was trying to block the bandits from entering the cockpit. Two pilots were injured. The passengers of the plane are unharmed. The Soviet government turned to the Turkish authorities with a request to extradite the murderous criminals to bring them to the Soviet court, as well as to return the plane and the Soviet citizens who were on board the An-24 aircraft.
At an altitude of 800 meters, two passengers - the father and son of Brazinskasy called the flight attendant and handed over a note to the pilots demanding to change the route and fly to Turkey. The girl rushed into the cockpit and shouted: "Attack!" The criminals rushed after her, opening fire. "Don't get up!" shouted the youngest of the hijackers. "Otherwise we'll blow up the plane!" Soon the captured board crossed the Soviet-Turkish border, and after another half an hour was over the airfield in Trabzon. Passengers and crew members were asked to stay in Turkey, but no one agreed to this. The next day, on a specially sent plane, all the people and the body of the deceased girl were taken to the USSR. A little later, the Turks returned the stolen An-24. After returning from Turkey, the plane was repaired at the Kiev ARZ 410 and again flew in the Sukhumi squadron with a photo of Nadia Kurchenko in the cabin. In 1979, the aircraft was transferred to Samarkand, where it was operated until the resource was completely depleted, and in 1997 it was written off for scrap.
The name of Nadezhda in one day spread all over the world. And for many years it became a symbol of Komsomol heroism. In many schools in the USSR, Komsomol and pioneer detachments are called the name of hope. Nadezhda Kurchenko was buried in the center of Sukhumi in the form of a flight attendant and with a Komsomol badge. In Sukhumi, a park was named in her honor and a memorial was erected. After 20 years, her grave was transferred to the city cemetery of the city of Glazov at the request of her mother.
After the death of the flight attendant, the rules for the safety of passengers during air travel were radically changed, the rules for screening passengers and luggage were introduced, and the norms of laws against air terrorism were tightened not only in the USSR, but throughout the world. Metal detectors and pre-flight screening appeared at airports, border flights began to be accompanied by armed guards “in civilian clothes”, weapons began to be issued to the crew, and a special article 211 appeared in the Criminal Code - “Aircraft hijacking”. The USSR also learned a lesson from the reaction of the West to the terrorist act of the Brazinskas. The leadership of the country, and especially the KGB, which was in charge of this case, finally believed in the caveman anti-communism and anti-Sovietism of the Western elites. In the fight against dissidents inside the USSR, the KGB increasingly began to be guided by the idea that "dissenters" were just a pawn in the hands of foreign intelligence services.
In 1982, Gennady Bocharov wrote a long detailed essay about Nadezhda in the publication Young Guard http://apsnyteka.org/1319-bocharov_g_nadezhda_kurchenko.html
Abkhazia is one of the famous and favorite resorts of Russian travelers. Traditionally, people with low and medium budgets go there, and this country has the status of a health resort with inexpensive and reasonable prices. Its characteristic advantages are the absence of barriers in the language, no visas are needed, as well as an absolutely inexpensive price for a vacation.
It should be noted that holidays in Abkhazia pricing policy it will cost much more profitable than in the Crimea or, but the level is comparable to competitors.
- Lovers of hiking through the mountains, swimming, gentle sun and warm sea, Lake Ritsa, a feature of which is a change in the color of the water relative to the season.
- For admirers of antiquity, traditions, culture and architecture, this country can also be useful and interesting - a trip to Sukhumi.
- The main attraction is the New Athos Monastery (monastery). Believers come here from many parts of the CIS.
Journey to Abkhazia - Gagra. The beauty of nature, the gentle sea, the sun - the culture and traditions of the Abkhaz - all this will appeal to everyone
However, all travelers are interested in how best and as quickly as possible to get to this amazing and beautiful country? Of course, by plane. But is there an airport in Abkhazia? And if there is, where is the airport in Abkhazia and are flights allowed there?
Many, even after following the links of the Internet, literally immediately fall in love with this amazing and picturesque country, everyone wants to taste national cuisine different dishes, enjoy your vacation, admire the majestic mountain scenery.
The main resorts are Gagra, Pitsunda, Gudauta, New Athos and Sukhum - the capital of the country. But in which city is the airport in Abkhazia, we will understand further.
Sukhum is the capital of Abkhazia, glad to welcome tourists, guests of the country
Airfields of the southern country
Let's figure out which cities have airports in Abkhazia?
Today there are two operating airports:
- Bamboura. This combat airfield is located in the Gudauta region. He does not receive passenger ships and is used exclusively for military purposes - for training.
- Another airport in Abkhazia, whose name Babushara. This airfield is located in Sukhumi. However, due to the fact that he did not pass the international certification of ICAO, the airport is forbidden to serve. The airfield is used only as a last resort: for internal flights of helicopters, UN aviation and Russian peacekeepers.
It should be concluded that the operating airports of Abkhazia, although the list is not long, do not serve passenger airliners.
Airports of Abkhazia today do not accept civil ships
How to get on vacation
If it is forbidden for civilian ships to land, then how can one get into the country and what is the nearest airport to Abkhazia?
This can be done ground transport– by train or car. Many tourists who have to get from afar, and the final destination of Abkhazia, the airport of arrival for them in Sochi -, and from there they get by land transport to Sukhumi or another resort place.
One of the nearest airports to Abkhazia is Adler (Sochi)
So, how to get there and what routes are feasible:
- Using a taxi (from the airport to the border checkpoint - 9 km).
- By train (they depart twice a day).
- Using water transport(from Sochi to Gagra).
- Buses or minibuses (their departure is carried out from the bus station and the city center).
As you can see, everything is very simple and accessible. Adler Airport is one of the largest and most innovative. After passing all the services upon arrival, leaving the airport, you can immediately transfer to the bus and after half an hour or an hour you will be at the desired place.
You can travel from Adler to Abkhazia by land transport
Actually, this is all the information about the airfields of Abkhazia, about how. According to information from reliable sources, in the near future the authorities of the country are planning to reconstruct the airfield, therefore, there is a possibility of obtaining international status from civil aviation.
Results
And finally, who still doubts whether to go or not, I would like to say that Abkhazia is very friendly and hospitable country, which has its own amazing, interesting ancient history, original culture, interesting traditions intertwined with delightful nature.
Such a state cannot but bring every tourist a lot of bright and positive impressions. The locals are proud of their country, they love and revere their homeland, their nature, mountains, lakes, forests. It is here that the tourism industry is actively developing every year, as evidenced by the many comfortable hotels, boarding houses and sanatoriums with world-class service.
