Pulkovo is the airport of the northern capital of Russia. This is one of the largest points of passenger and cargo air transportation. The terminal infrastructure consists of domestic, international and cargo terminals, a special refueling complex (aircraft refueling system) and a parking area.
The airport is 15 kilometers away from the city center and serves domestic, international scheduled and charter flights. It meets all safety requirements, the new terminal is designed for the complete convenience of passengers.
History of Creation
In 1932, an airport designed for civilian traffic was opened in the city on the Neva. At that time, the airfield was called Shosseinaya in honor of the railway station, which was located nearby. And already in 1933, the flagship of the Pravda propaganda squadron arrived from Moscow. In the same year, residents of Leningrad raised funds to create a giant aircraft called Maxim Gorky. And on August 18, the USSR celebrated a new holiday - Dayair fleet.
Leningrad began to actively develop regional transportation. The first squadron (which flew the U-2, R-1, R-5 aircraft) in Pulkovo under the command of L. Kruse was created in 1934. In 1936, the groundwork for the airport terminal was laid, the first of its kind. It looked far from the same as modern airport stations and looked more like a large barracks. By 1941, the Leningrad-Moscow flight had become a regular passenger route, but after the outbreak of World War II, Shosseynaya airport was closed, as the front line passed through it.
After the blockade was lifted in 1944, the airport resumes transport communications, first as a military facility, and four years later completely switches to passenger and transport transportation. In 1951, a new terminal building was opened, with which the time of jet aircraft, such as the TU-104, came. In 1965, Shosseinaya Airport became the second in the USSR in terms of passenger traffic (Moscow Vnukovo was in first place). In the 1970s, the construction of a new terminal and famous glasses began under the leadership of architect A. Zhuk. In 1971 the airport was awarded the Order of the October Revolution.
Welcome to Pulkovo International Airport
In 1973, the construction of a new terminal was completed, and at the same time the name of the airport was changed to Pulkovo. Passengers who arrived on April 25 in the hero city of Leningrad heard the new unusual name for the first time in the arrival information from the aircraft crew. In those days there was no passport control, as flightswere mostly inland. The famous duty-free site Duty Free was also absent, so the passenger flow moved without delays, in contrast to modern problems at check-ins (long queues and so on).
2005 went down in the history of the airport as the division of the Pulkovo airline into a separate airline Rossiya and a separate enterprise - Pulkovo Airport, which in November 2007 becomes the property of the city of St. Petersburg.
Airport today
In 2014, all domestic and international flights were fully transferred to the new terminal, built to replace the previous two, which completely stopped their work. At the moment, Pulkovo International consists of one large new modern terminal and Pulkovo-3, designed for business aviation and VIP flights.
The airport meets all international standards and contains:
- Services for withdrawing and exchanging funds. In addition to special exchange points, a number of ATMs are installed in the arrivals and departures areas. There is also a bank branch in the arrivals area, which provides a full range of banking services.
- The post office is located on the third floor.
- The first floor is equipped with free Wi-Fi hotspots.
- For passengers who want to eat before departure, the airport offers a variety of bars, restaurants and fast food cafes.
- For those whodid not have time to buy souvenirs, or there was a need to buy other necessary things, the terminal has a large selection of shops, both souvenir and clothes, shoes, as well as food markets, bookshops and flower shops.
- Passengers can seek medical assistance at the first-aid post and pharmacy kiosk.
- In the area of the first floor (arrival of international flights at Pulkovo Airport), where baggage is claimed, there is a Lost and Found room (a room for forgotten things), passengers who did not find their luggage on the tape can also contact here. The application is made in the name of the carrier (airline).
Facilities for passengers
Pulkovo International Airport provides comfortable business class lounges. Three VIP lounges: two for domestic flights and one for international flights. Guests can spend their time before their flight in peace and comfort, using unlimited high-speed Wi-Fi, enjoy free drinks and light snacks. And in the local hotel "Pulkovskaya" you can use the conference hall for 600 people.
The new airport terminal is equipped with elevators for passengers with disabilities, toilets are also equipped with an assistance system. Before boarding the aircraft cabin, such passengers are required to notify the airline in advance, and the passenger will be taken on board using a special medical ambulift.
For transfer passengers, Pulkovo International offers the services of the Crown Plaza, Pulkovskaya hotels and other business hotels.class. A special shuttle bus from each hotel runs according to a schedule (which can be checked on the websites of a particular hotel).
Flight directions and airlines
The airport cooperates with many Russian and international airlines. Four Russian airlines are based in international Pulkovo: Rossiya Airlines, Rusline, charter airlines Azureir and Pskovavia, as well as a separate detachment of Aeroflot.
The list of airlines operating flights from / to Pulkovo International is quite extensive, for example, you can purchase tickets for flights: Air France, Azur air, Belavia, Iberia, British Airways, Brussel Airlines, Air Astana, Alitalia, Pegas Fly (Ikar), LOT Polish Airlines, Red Wings, Royal Flight, S7 Airlines, Somon air, Swiss and other carriers.
Pulkovo is an international airport, from here flights depart to destinations such as Zagreb, Athens, Kerkyra, Copenhagen, Berlin, Antalya, Bukhara, Ashgabat, Hamburg, Samarkand, Bishkek, Astana, Ganja, Djerba, Tenerife, Almaty, Dusseldorf, Istanbul, Yerevan, Prague, etc. The list of cities is quite large, you can always find the right option for yourself when planning a vacation or a business trip to a particular country.
Destinations of domestic flights are varied, for example: Yaroslavl, Saratov, Gelendzhik, Yekaterinburg, Izhevsk, Kazan, Anapa, Norilsk, Belgorod, Krasnodar, Magas, Makhachkala, Bugulma, Solovki, Mineralnye Vody, Mirny, Moscow, Murmansk and others cities in our country. ATregional Russian companies fly to airports of small towns, this enables the passenger to get to the desired destination without transfers.
In Pulkovo, an online scoreboard of international flights (as well as domestic ones) can be found in check-in areas, in all departure lounges, as well as on the official website. There is also a schedule of all flights and airline website addresses.
Scheme of Pulkovo International Airport
In the public areas of the terminal there are maps of the location of the departure and arrival halls of international flights to Pulkovo, domestic flights, as well as other important places for airport guests.
How to get to the city
- Buses 39 and 39A (express) run to Moskovskaya metro station.
- From the airport directly to the city center can be reached by minibus K39.
- On official taxis, the final price of the trip varies from 500 to 1500 rubles (special order desks are located on the second floor of the arrivals hall).
The airport has car parks: P1, 2, 3, which are located next to the international terminal. These car parks are used for short term parking. P4 is a little removed from the airport building and is long-term (a special free minibus runs to the parking lot at intervals of 15 minutes).
All buses and fixed-route taxis can be found at the exit from the point of arrival of international flights in Pulkovo.
