Airport type Public Focus city for Wizz Air Website kutaisiairport.ge Code KUT Phone +995 431 23 70 00 | Serves Kutaisi, Georgia Elevation AMSL 223 ft / 68 m Address Georgia Elevation 68 m | |
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Operator “United Airports of Georgia” LLC Similar Aeetes Palace Hotel, Kutaisi Hostel Relax Profiles | ||
Kutaisi International Airport (IATA: KUT, ICAO: UGKO) also known as David the Builder Kutaisi International Airport is an airport located 14 km (8.7 mi) west of Kutaisi, the third largest city in Georgia and capital of the western region of Imereti. It is one of three international airports currently in operation in Georgia, along with Tbilisi International Airport serving the Georgian capital and Batumi International Airport near the Adjara Black Sea resort. The airport is operated by United Airports of Georgia, a state-owned company.
History
The airport was closed for renovation in November 2011. Its reopening ceremony was held on 27 September 2012. It was attended by President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili, Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán and Wizz Air CEO József Váradi.
For preparation works for the commissioning of the airport and training of staff, the French company Vinci Airports was contracted. Some construction work around the airport continues. There is one duty-free shop and two coffee shops operating at the airport. The airport is currently connected to scheduled marshrutkas operated by Georgian Bus, with services to Kutaisi, Tbilisi and Batumi after each arrival. The airport terminal is located next to the main road between Kutaisi and Batumi, so it is possible to transfer to those cities also by marshrutka.
The priority of the Kutaisi airport is to attract low tariff airlines and create a special environment between airlines and airports. It will be equipped with the highest quality navigation and weather systems. A significant growth in the number of passenger has been noted soon after the reopening of the airport in 2012, mainly due to Wizz Air operations linking Kutaisi with Polish and Ukrainian airports. For 2013 the operator reported 187,939 passengers.
In February 2016 Wizz Air announced a new base at David the Builder Kutaisi International Airport.