Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport

Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport Aéroport de Bordeaux-Mérignac
IATA: BOD – ICAO: LFBD BOD Location of airport in Aquitaine
Summary
Airport type		Public / Military
Serves		Bordeaux, France
Location		Mérignac, France
Elevation AMSL		162 ft / 49 m
Coordinates		44°49′42″N 000°42′56″W / 44.82833°N 0.71556°W / 44.82833; -0.71556
Website		www.bordeaux.aeroport.fr
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	m	ft
05/23	3,100	10,171	Asphalt
11/29	2,415	7,923	Asphalt
Statistics (2010)
Passengers			3,663,702
Source: French AIP[1]

Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport (French: Aéroport de Bordeaux-Mérignac) (IATA: BOD, ICAO: LFBD) serves French city of Bordeaux. It is located in the town of Mérignac, 10 km (6.2 mi) west of Bordeaux,^[1] within the département of Gironde.

In 2010, the airport served 3,663,702 passengers, making it the sixth busiest airport in France in terms of passengers.

General Charles de Gaulle took off from the airport to travel to London in 1940. The following day he made the call of June 18th (Appeal of 18 June).

During the early years of the Cold War, Bordeaux-Mérignac was a front-line NATO facility for the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE). As well as its civil use, the French Air Force designated Mérignac Air Base BA 106, and it has been used in its strategic air force.

As a consequence of the temporary closure of the Cazaux military base, the civil authorities have been forced to share the runway with the French Army since November 2005.

History

Main article: Bordeaux-Merignac Air Base

Bordeaux Mérignac's origins begin in 1917, when a joint civilian/military air field was established there. The facility was a major hub for Air France, flying from Bordeaux to various destinations in Europe and North Africa. Military uses by the French Air Force was as a training centre and also as a bomber base.

During World War II the German Luftwaffe took control of the base and used it as a centre for maritime reconnaissance. Focke-Wulf Fw-200 "Condor" and Heinkel He 177 Greif aircraft of the Luftwaffe's maritime patrol bomber wing Kampfgeschwader 40 flew from the base roaming the Atlantic Ocean looking for Allied shipping.

The United States Army Air Force 8th Air Force and the Royal Air Force attacked the base in 1943.

After the war Air France resumed commercial operations out of Mérignac and the re-established French Air Force returned to use the facility.

In 1951 Mérignac was turned over to NATO for use by the United States Air Force. Construction of a modern air base suitable for jet aircraft began on 1 August. Much evidence of the war remained with many warning signs still in German, scattered munitions around the facility; the perimeter was still mined; large quantities of practice bombs, and destroyed hangars and other buildings as a result of Allied air raids.

In 1957, C-119G transports from Evreux AB, France moved the USAFE Mobile Headquarters from Wiesbaden AB, Ger. to Bordeaux AB. The USAFE Mobile Headquarters constisted of nearly 100 semi-trailers fitted with desks, beds, showers, toilets which were designed to slide into any standard C-119 cargo compartment. The problem was that after they were built it was learned that several bridges in Europe could not support the weight of the individual trailers. The trailers were sent to Bordeaux for storage and eventual disposal.

On 1 October 1958, Bordeaux-Mérignac Air Base was closed to reduce USAFE expenses and manpower. All ongoing activities were moved to the NATO Chateauroux-Deols Air Base in central France. The U. S. Army operated a logistics facility at Mérignac for a few years, but ended their activities in 1961 and the entire facility was returned to French control.

Terminals, airlines and destinations

Mérignac airport has two terminals, with three halls (A, B and Billi). In addition to almost hourly flights to Paris, and daily flights to the major French cities, the airport offers daily and weekly flights to a large number of European and international destinations.

View of the airport

Airlines	Destinations	Hall
Aer Lingus	Seasonal: Dublin	A
Air Algérie	Algiers Seasonal: Oran	A
Air Austral	Saint-Denis de la Réunion	A
Air France	Lyon, Marseille, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Paris-Orly	B
Air France operated by Régional	Barcelona, Lille, Lisbon, Nantes, Nice, Rome-Fiumicino, Strasbourg Seasonal: Ajaccio, Bastia, Málaga	B
Air Transat	Seasonal: Montréal-Trudeau	A
British Airways	London-Gatwick	A
Chalair Aviation	Brest, Rennes	B
Czech Airlines	Seasonal: Prague	A
Eastern Airways	Dijon	A
EasyJet	Lisbon [begins 20 April 2012], London-Gatwick, London-Luton, Lyon, Madrid, Milan-Malpensa, Nice [begins 30 March 2012] Seasonal: Bristol, Liverpool	Billi
EasyJet Switzerland	Basel/Mulhouse, Geneva	Billi
Flybe	Seasonal: Southampton	A
Iberia operated by Air Nostrum	Madrid	A
Jet4you	Agadir, Casablanca, Marrakech	A
KLM operated by KLM Cityhopper	Amsterdam	B
Norwegian Air Shuttle	Seasonal: Oslo-Gardermoen, Stockholm-Arlanda	A
Royal Air Maroc	Casablanca, Marrakech	A
Ryanair	Brussels South-Charleroi, Porto, Rome-Ciampino, Seville Seasonal: Bologna, Edinburgh	Billi
TAP Portugal operated by Portugália	Lisbon	A
Tunisair	Tunis	A
Vueling	Barcelona	Billi

Cargo airlines

Airlines	Destinations
DHL Aviation operated by Exin	Vitoria

Ground transport

The airport is accessible by :

• Road: Rocade 11b
• Public transport:
  • Jet'Bus shuttle serving the Bordeaux Saint-Jean railway station
  • Bus line 1 serving the city centre.

In the medium-term, there are plans for the tramway system to link the airport with the city centre.

See also

• United States Air Force in France

References

1. ^ ^{a b} LFBD – BORDEAUX MÉRIGNAC (PDF). AIP from French Service d'information aéronautique, effective 17 Nov 2011.

External links

• Bordeaux Airport (official site) (English)
• Aéroport de Bordeaux (Union des Aéroports Français) (French)
• History of aeronautics in Bordeaux and its area (French)
• Airport information for LFBD at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.
• Accident history for BOD at Aviation Safety Network