Kalpana Kalpana (Editor)

Rosh Pina Airport

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Airport type
  
Public

05/23
  
3,190

15/33
  
3,655

Elevation
  
281 m

Phone
  
+972 4-613-6200

Location
  
Rosh Pina, Mahanayim

3,190
  
972

Address
  
Mahanayim, Israel

Code
  
RPN

Rosh Pina Airport

Operator
  
Israel Airports Authority

Similar
  
תלתן, שם הורד, Rosh Pina Central Station, Haifa Airport, פרחי לב הגליל ‑ חנות פרחים

Cessna 172 landing at rosh pina airport israel


Rosh Pina Airport (Hebrew: שְׂדֵה הַתְּעוּפָה רֹאשׁ פִּינָּה‎‎, Arabic: مطار روش بينا‎‎) (IATA: RPN, ICAO: LLIB), sometimes called Mahanayim Airport due to its proximity to Mahanayim, is an Israeli airport located in Rosh Pinna, near the Safed-Hatzor-Rosh Pina Industrial Park.

Contents

The airport is 16km from Safed, 29km from Tiberias and 30km from Kiryat Shmona.

Taking off from rosh pina airport


History

The airport was built in 1943 during the British Mandate for Palestine. Mahanayim served the British army against Vichy France in Syria. In 1948 the airport was taken over by the IAF. In the 1950s, Arkia Israel Airlines began service to the airport, working from a hut which served as a passenger terminal and air traffic control tower. By 1968, a new terminal building had been constructed and three years later, in 1971, a fire station and control tower were erected. Following increased activity, the passenger terminal was further expanded in 1994. In 2008, the airport was closed temporarily for the testing of an Elbit Systems unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

Accidents

  • On 19 April 1974 two Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters collided over the airport. One of the helicopters managed to land safely while the other helicopter crashed and caught fire. All 8 IDF soldiers on board died.
  • On 4 February 1997 two Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters took off from the airport on their way towards the Israeli Security Zone in southern Lebanon. The helicopters collided over She'ar Yashuv in northern Israel and crashed, killing all 73 IDF soldiers on board (see 1997 Israeli helicopter disaster).
  • Statistics

    Since the beginning of the century the airport has seen a decreasing number of passengers (though this trend has stabilized since 2006). The drop off in passenger volume has been attributed to major upgrades undertaken on the road infrastructure to the northern periphery of Israel since the early 2000s, leading to a viable alternative to air service to the region. Most flights are to Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv.

    References

    Rosh Pina Airport Wikipedia