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Monday, March 8, 2010

Sunan International Airport: Pyongyang


Sunan International Airport is the main airport serving Pyongyang, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, located 24 km from the city’s center.
When traveling to this unique country you are likely to arrive at this international airport. Pyongyang has undergone great restoration following the Korean War of the 1950s. Massive buildings line the streets and large monuments catch your eye. When visiting the city be sure to look out for land marks such as the Juche Tower, Rungnado May Day Stadium, Kim II Sung Stadium and the Pyongyang TV Tower.

On arriving at Pyongyang’s Sunan International Airport you are certain to be impressed with the fine facilities including a business center, disabled facilities, passenger lounge, few souvenir shops, duty-free stores, a bookshop and the Korea Trade Bank. Passengers looking for something to eat or drink can stop by the bar or restaurant. The airport also has a baggage storage facility; service hours are from 08:00 to 21:00 and the charge is 1.5 Korean Won (KPW) per piece. Air Koryo offer bus fares to Pyongyang and to Sunan airport.The airport’s book shop opens at 10:00. The airport’s restaurant, bar and the Korea Foreign Trade Bank all operate from 09:00 to 18:00. The airport also can cater for four aircraft simultaneously. There are also 17 separate parking bays for additional aircraft. The airport also has a maintenance area that consists of two hangars one large and one smaller along with a large apron.

The airport possesses 2 concrete runways. The first is in a 01/19 direction and measures 13 241ft or 4 037m. The second is in a 17/35 direction and measures 11 480ft or 3 500m. The larger runway handles international flights, whilst the smaller is for civil aircraft and domestic flights. Navigational aids for aircraft at the airport are VOR-DME (VHF Omni-directional Range Distance Measuring Equipment) and NDB (Non-Directional Beacon).
Airlines which fly to and from Sunan International Airport are Air China, Aeroflot and Air Koryo.
In fact, Air Koryo is the chief airline operating from the North Korean airport. During the Summer months Far Eastern Air Transport and Mandarin Airlines do offer chartered flights for tour groups to Pyongyang from Taipei.

Air Koryo, based at Sunan Airport in Pyongyang, is state-owned and has scheduled flights to the following destinations: Beijing, Bangkok, Shenyang and Vladivostok. The airline also occasionally organizes chartered flights to other areas of Asia, Europe and Africa.

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