EGFH
Swansea Airport (IATA: SWS, ICAO: EGFH) is a minor airport located at
Fairwood Common on the Gower Peninsula to the west of Swansea.
The airport is mainly used to handle light aircraft and private planes. A
flight training school is based at the airport offering training on light
aircraft and helicopters. The flight school has a number of aircraft which are
also used for practice and leisure. One of the Wales Air Ambulance helicopters
is based there. Additionally, it is used by police helicopters.
Facilities
The airport's facilities date back to the early 1940s. There are 3 runways
arranged in a triangular formation, of which only two are currently active. The
main runway 04/22 is a little under 1,500m, aligned in a northeast/southwest
configuration. Runway 10/28 is 800m long, aligned in a northwest/southeast
configuration, crossing the main runway.
Located on the eastern part of the site is the airport's only terminal building
with seats for 25 passengers. The air traffic control tower is integrated into
the terminal building. The airport has only two hangars, of which one is small
and requires updating.
Access to the airport is adequate for the facilities it offers. It can be
reached via the A4118 road, running through the Gower Peninsula. Overall it is
quite distant from any major roads, taking around 40 minutes to reach from the
nearest M4 junction, travelling on mainly suburban roads.
History
Swansea airport was built on what was originally common land during World War
II. The aerodrome was opened on June 15th 1941 after taking nearly a year to
develop. It was originally built to be a fighter station. The airport became a
sector station within months of opening, taking on the responsibility of the air
defence for the whole of South Wales.
The airfield fulfilled a variety of military roles during World War II,
following which it was decommissioned by the RAF in 1946. It was not until 1956
that the RAF released the airport land to Swansea City Council, to allow the
airport to be developed for commercial usage. In the following 20 years, a
variety of airlines operated through the airport with varying degrees of
success. Cambrian Airlines operated services to Jersey and Guernsey; and Morton
Air Services operated a service to Gatwick. Scheduled regular flights then
ceased in 1969. During the 1970s and a1980, only ad-hoc and summer charter
flights continued to operate.
The 1990s did not see much change at the airport. In April 2000, Swansea
entrepreneur Martin Morgan via his company Jaxx Landing Ltd., bought the
remaining lease. Ambitious plans were put in place to upgrade the then run down
facilities.
