New Chitose Airport (新千歳空港, Shin-Chitose Kūkō) (IATA: CTS, ICAO: RJCC) is an international airport located 2.7 nautical miles (5.0 km; 3.1 mi) south-southeast of Chitose[3] and Tomakomai, Hokkaidō, Japan, serving the Sapporo metropolitan area. By both traffic and land area, it is the largest airport in Hokkaidō.

New Chitose Airport

新千歳空港

Shin-Chitose Kūkō
New Chitose Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerMinistry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
OperatorHokkaido Airports [ja]
ServesSapporo metropolitan area
LocationChitose and Tomakomai
OpenedJuly 20, 1988; 36 years ago (1988-07-20)
Focus city for
Operating base for
Elevation AMSL70 ft / 21 m
Coordinates42°46′31″N 141°41′33″E / 42.77528°N 141.69250°E / 42.77528; 141.69250
Websitewww.hokkaido-airports.com/en/new-chitose/
Map
CTS/RJCC is located in Hokkaido
CTS/RJCC
CTS/RJCC
Location in Hokkaido
CTS/RJCC is located in Japan
CTS/RJCC
CTS/RJCC
Location in Japan
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
01R/19L 3,000 9,843 Asphalt/concrete
01L/19R 3,000 9,843 Asphalt/concrete
18R/36L[1] 2,700 8,858 Concrete
18L/36R[1] 4,000 13,123 Asphalt
Statistics (2017 = One of Mostly domestic terminal airport in Japan)
Passengers22,718,612
Cargo (metric tonnes)216,812
Aircraft movement150,620

It is adjacent to Chitose Air Base, a Japan Air Self-Defense Force base which houses F-15 Eagle fighter jets, the Japanese Air Force One government aircraft and a number of smaller emergency response aircraft and helicopters. Chitose and New Chitose have separate runways but are interconnected by taxiways, and aircraft at either facility can enter the other by ground if permitted; the runways at Chitose are occasionally used to relieve runway closures at New Chitose due to winter weather.

New Chitose Airport is one of six 24-hour airports in Japan, but it is the only inland airport.

As of 2018, it was the fifth-busiest airport in Japan, serving 23.7 million passengers, and ranked 64th in the world in terms of passengers carried.[4] The 819 km (509 mi) Sapporo–Tokyo Haneda route is the second busiest air route in the world, with 9.7 million passengers carried in 2018.[5]

The airport continues to upgrade its facilities to accommodate the growing number of passengers, and Skytrax has it ranked 49th in the top 100 airports in the world in 2024, jump up from 102nd the previous year. As a result, the airport was awarded Skytrax's World's Most Improved Airport for 2024.[citation needed]

History

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New Chitose opened on July 20, 1988 to replace the adjacent Chitose Airport, a joint-use facility which had served passenger flights since 1963.[6] The airport's IATA airport code was originally SPK. This code was later adopted as a city code to refer to both New Chitose and the smaller Okadama Airport in central Sapporo, which handles commuter flights within Hokkaido.

New Chitose became Japan's first 24-hour airport in 1994.[citation needed] Services between 10 PM and 7 AM are currently limited to six flights per day due to noise alleviation concerns. Four of these slots are currently used by passenger flights to Tokyo while the other two are used by cargo flights.

New Chitose previously had long-haul service to Amsterdam (KLM, 1997–2002), Cairns (Qantas, 1992–1998 and 2004–2007) and Honolulu (JALWays, 1992–2003, Hawaiian Airlines since 2012). Service to Europe resumed when Finnair launched a new weekly flight to Helsinki from 15 December 2019. Finnair was the unique company to provide direct and scheduled flights between Sapporo and Europe.[7] International services are mainly for transporting tourists from the rest of Asia and for sightseeing and skiing. The area surrounding gates 0 through 2, on the north end of the main terminal, was a sterile area for international flights until the international terminal opened for service on March 26, 2010.

The airport was upgraded with additional private aircraft handling facilities for the 34th G8 summit, held in Hokkaido in 2008.

Due to the airport's sharing of air traffic control with Chitose Air Base, daytime civil operations are limited to 32 takeoffs and landings per hour, and operations by certain foreign aircraft (including Chinese and Russian aircraft) are prohibited on Mondays and Thursdays. These restrictions were scheduled to be eased in March 2017.[8] A second terminal is being built roughly doubling the existing terminal and capacity, scheduled to be complete by August 2019.[9]

Statistics

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Annual passenger traffic at CTS airport. See Wikidata query.

Operations

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Aerial view of New Chitose Airport

The airport has a semicircular domestic terminal (reminiscent of the semicircular terminals at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport) with eighteen gates, and a smaller international terminal with six gates.

Operating hours for international flights at CTS are restricted by the Japanese government in order to avoid interference with JASDF operations at the adjacent air base. As of April 2012, international flights are permitted on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from noon to 4 pm, and from 5 pm on Friday through 11:59 pm on Sunday.[10]

Airlines and destinations

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Passenger

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AirlinesDestinations
Aero K Cheongju (begins 28 November 2024)[11]
AirAsia X Kuala Lumpur–International
Air Busan Busan, Seoul–Incheon[12]
Air China Beijing–Capital
Air Do Fukuoka,[13] Kobe, Nagoya–Centrair, Sendai, Tokyo–Haneda
Air Seoul Seoul–Incheon
All Nippon Airways Fukuoka, Kobe, Komatsu, Osaka–Itami, Osaka–Kansai, Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita[14]
Seasonal: Naha
ANA Wings Akita, Aomori, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Hakodate, Hiroshima, Kushiro, Memanbetsu, Nagoya–Centrair, Nakashibetsu, Niigata, Osaka–Itami, Osaka–Kansai, Sendai, Toyama, Wakkanai
Seasonal: Kobe, Okayama, Rishiri, Shizuoka[15]
Asiana Airlines Seoul–Incheon[16]
Cathay Pacific Hong Kong[17]
Cebu Pacific Manila (begins 16 January 2025)[18]
China Airlines Taipei–Taoyuan
China Eastern Airlines Shanghai–Pudong[19]
Eastar Jet Seoul–Incheon[20]
EVA Air Taipei–Taoyuan
Fuji Dream Airlines Matsumoto, Shizuoka, Yamagata
Greater Bay Airlines Hong Kong (begins 20 December 2024)[21]
Hainan Airlines Hangzhou[22]
Hong Kong Airlines Hong Kong
Ibex Airlines Sendai
J-Air Aomori, Hanamaki, Kagoshima, Memanbetsu, Niigata, Osaka–Itami, Sendai
Seasonal: Izumo, Kitakyushu
Japan Airlines Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Nagoya–Centrair, Osaka–Itami, Osaka–Kansai, Tokyo–Haneda
Jeju Air Busan, Seoul–Incheon
Seasonal: Muan
Jetstar Japan Nagoya–Centrair, Osaka–Kansai, Tokyo–Narita
Jin Air Busan,[23] Seoul–Incheon
Juneyao Air Shanghai–Pudong[24]
Korean Air Seoul–Incheon[citation needed]
Peach Fukuoka,[25] Nagoya–Centrair,[26] Naha,[27] Osaka–Kansai, Sendai,[28] Tokyo–Narita
Scoot Singapore, Taipei–Taoyuan[29]
Shenzhen Airlines Shenzhen[30]
Singapore Airlines Seasonal: Singapore (resumes 1 December 2024)[31]
Skymark Airlines Fukuoka, Ibaraki, Kobe, Nagoya–Centrair, Tokyo–Haneda
Spring Airlines Shanghai–Pudong
Spring Airlines Japan Tokyo–Narita
Starlux Airlines Taipei–Taoyuan[32]
Thai AirAsia X Bangkok–Don Mueang
Thai Airways International Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi[33]
Thai VietJet Air Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi, Taipei–Taoyuan (both begin 17 December 2024)[34]
Tigerair Taiwan Kaohsiung (begins 21 January 2025),[35] Taipei–Taoyuan[36]
T'way Air Daegu, Seoul–Incheon[37]

Cargo

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AirlinesDestinations
Air Incheon Seoul–Incheon[38]
ANA Cargo Tokyo–Haneda[citation needed]

Other facilities

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The domestic terminal contains a hot spa, a cinema complex, museums, and a 188-room hotel, the Air Terminal Hotel.[39]

The international terminal is also equipped with a luxury hotel, the Hotel Porton International.

China Airlines operates its Sapporo office on the third floor of the airport building.[40]

The airline Hokkaido Air System was at one time headquartered in the New Chitose airport terminal.[41] Now its head office is on the property of Okadama Airport in Higashi-ku, Sapporo.[42]

Ground transportation

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New Chitose Airport Station

Railways

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New Chitose Airport Station is located on a spur off the Chitose Line of Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido).The fastest time to Sapporo Station is 37 minutes on the Rapid Airport Service Trains, and the fastest time to Otaru Station is 73 minutes. The fastest time to Sapporo Station is 33 minutes on the Special Rapid Airport Service Trains.[43] Due to the ever-increasing number of passengers, trains to Sapporo Station are becoming seriously crowded.

  • Hokkaidō Chūō Bus/Hokuto Kotsu joint service (Sapporo 4 trips/h, Oyachi 4 trips/h)
  • Hokkaidō Chūō Bus (Asabu 1–2 trips/h, Miyanosawa 1–2 trips/h)
  • Hokuto Kotsu (Apa Hotel & Resort 2 trips/h, Maruyama Park hourly)
  • Donan Bus (Tomakomai 1–2 trips/h, Noboribetsu 3 trips/day, Muroran 12 trips/day, Hobetsu 2 trips/day, Urakawa 2 trips/day)
  • Atsuma Bus (Atsuma 3 trips/day)

References

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  1. ^ a b 18R/36L and 18L/36R are part of Chitose Air Base and operated by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force
  2. ^ "New Chitose International Airport" (PDF). Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
  3. ^ "AIS Japan". Aisjapan.mlit.go.jp. Archived from the original on 2016-05-17. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  4. ^ "Total Number of Domestic/International Passengers since the Opening of New Chitose Airport-Other Data | New Chitose Airport Terminal". Hokkaido-kukou.jp. 1988-07-20. Archived from the original on 2013-12-29. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  5. ^ 特定本邦航空運送事業者に係る情報 (PDF). Mlit.go.jp. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  6. ^ "Total Number of Domestic/International Passengers since the Opening of New Chitose Airport-Other Data".
  7. ^ "Finnair adds further capacity on Japan routes". Air Cargo News. November 11, 2010.
  8. ^ "新千歳空港 17年春に発着枠拡大". Mainichi Shimbun. 22 April 2016. Archived from the original on 26 May 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
  9. ^ "新千歳空港、国際線ビル2倍に 650億円投資". Nikkei.com. 17 November 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  10. ^ "報道発表資料:新千歳空港への外国航空機乗り入れ時間帯の再設定について - 国土交通省". Mlit.go.jp. 2014-05-19. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  11. ^ "Aero K NW24 Network Changes".
  12. ^ "Air Busan Adds Seoul – Sapporo Service From late-June 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  13. ^ "AirDo Adds Fukuoka Service From July 2022". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
  14. ^ "ANA NS23 Tokyo Narita Domestic Operation Changes – 13FEB23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  15. ^ ANA Dec 2022/Jan 2023 Shizuoka Operations Aeroroutes. 24 August 2022.
  16. ^ "Asiana Airlines Resumes Sapporo Service From Jan 2023". Aeroroutes. 14 November 2022.
  17. ^ Cathay Pacific Nov/Dec 2022 Japan Service Restorations Aeroroutes. 27 September 2022.
  18. ^ Liu, Jim (7 November 2024). "Cebu Pacific Schedules Manila – Sapporo 1Q25 Launch". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  19. ^ "Mainland Chinese Carriers August – October 2023 Japan Network – 30JUL23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  20. ^ "Eastarjet adds Seoul - Sapporo service from July 2024". AeroRoutes. 25 April 2024.
  21. ^ "Greater Bay Airlines Opens Sapporo 2024-25 Holidays Reservation". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
  22. ^ "Hainan Airlines Resumes Hangzhou – Sapporo Service From Dec 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  23. ^ "Timetables for this Month". New Chitose Airport Terminal. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  24. ^ "Juneyao Airlines Resumes Hokkaido Service in NW23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  25. ^ "Peach expands Sapporo operation from Sep 2017". Routesonline.com. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  26. ^ Liu, Jim. "Peach expands Nagoya Chubu service in late-Dec 2020". Routesonline. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  27. ^ Liu, Jim. "Peach expands Okinawa service in W20". Routesonline. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
  28. ^ "Peach launches Sendai base in Sep 2017". Routesonline.com. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  29. ^ "Scoot Resumes Sapporo Service From Nov 2022". AeroRoutes. 13 August 2022.
  30. ^ "Shenzhen Airlines Adds Shenzhen – Sapporo Service From mid-Jan 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  31. ^ "Singapore Airlines Tentatively Plans Sapporo Service Resumption in Dec 2024". AeroRoutes. 15 November 2023.
  32. ^ "Starlux Airlines Boosts Japan Network in NW22". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  33. ^ "Thai Airways International Resumes Sapporo Flights From August 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  34. ^ "Thai VietJet Air Plans Sapporo Dec 2024 Launch".
  35. ^ "tigerair Taiwan Adds Kaohsiung – Sapporo in 1Q25". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  36. ^ "tigerair Taiwan Accelerates International Network Restoration to August 2022". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  37. ^ T'Way Air NW22 Japan Operations – 27OCT22 Aeroroutes. 27 October 2022.
  38. ^ "에어인천, 일본 훗카이도 화물노선 첫 유치" [Air Incheon to Host Japan's First Cargo Route to Hokkaido]. Korea IT Times. 17 April 2014.
  39. ^ "【official website】Air Terminal Hotel".
  40. ^ "Northeast Asia Archived 2011-07-28 at the Wayback Machine." China Airlines. Retrieved on August 30, 2011. "Sapporo 3F, New Chitose Airport, Bibi, Chitose City 066-0012, Hokkaido, Japan"
  41. ^ "会社概要." Hokkaido Air System. Retrieved on May 19, 2009. "本社事務所 : 千歳市美々新千歳空港ターミナルビル内"
  42. ^ "会社概要 Archived 2016-08-22 at the Wayback Machine." Hokkaido Air System. Retrieved on August 30, 2011. "〒007-0880 札幌市東区丘珠町 丘珠空港内"
  43. ^ "New Chitose Airport →Sapporo|HOKKAIDO RAILWAY COMPANY". 2.jrhokkaido.co.jp. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
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