Yeouido Airport

Yeouido Airport was an international airport in Yeouido, Seoul, South Korea. It operated as an international airport from 1929 to 1958, and thereafter as a military base until 1971.

Yeouido Airport

여의도비행장
汝矣島飛行場

Yeouido Bihaengjang
Summary
Airport typeMilitary, Public (Closed)
OperatorImperial Japanese Army Air Service (1916~1929?)
Japanese Governor-General of Korea Department of Posts and Telecommunications (1929?~1945?)
U.S. Fifth Air Force (1945?~1958)
Republic of Korea Air Force (1958~1971)
ServesSeoul
LocationYeongdeungpo District, Seoul, South Korea
Built1916
In use1916–1971
Coordinates37°31′33″N 126°55′19″E
Map
Yeouido Airport
Location in South Korea
Demolished in 1971, the site is now part of Yeouido Park, KBS headquarters and MBC headquarters.

History

The Imperial Japanese Army constructed an airstrip on Yeouido in 1916. At the time, the island was predominantly farmland[1] but was also used as an Imperial Army training base.[2]

Japanese authorities significantly upgraded the facility in 1929, along with a number of other airfields in Korea, to serve as stops for air service to Manchuria.[1] Imperial Japanese Airways provided scheduled flights to Tokyo, Fukuoka, Mukden, Dalian, Hsinking and other destinations from the airport during the 1930s.[3][4] The much larger Kimpo Airfield opened to Japanese military traffic in 1943, and Yeouido was thereafter officially known as Keijo No. 2 Airfield (京城第2飛行場).[5]

After World War II, the airfield became a base of operations for Korean National Airlines (KNA/Koreanair), which operated international flights to Hong Kong and domestic flights to Pusan, Kangnung, Kwangju and Cheju.[6] Northwest Orient Airlines operated Seoul-Tokyo flights in the 1950s, providing onward connections to North America.[7]

The airport was prone to flooding that made it unusable during the summer rainy season. Gimpo International Airport took over Yeouido's commercial flights in 1958, and Seoul Air Base took over its military functions in 1971.[1]

References
  1. "Korea's First Airport Was on Yeouido". koreatimes. 2008-05-01. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  2. "朝鮮半島の旧陸海軍航空基地". navgunschl2.sakura.ne.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  3. "Dai Nippon Koku - Greater Japan Airlines - Imperial Japanese Airways". www.timetableimages.com. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  4. "Dai Nippon Koku - Greater Japan Airlines - Imperial Japanese Airways". www.timetableimages.com. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  5. "朝鮮・京城第2(汝矣島、京城)飛行場跡地: 空港探索・3". 空港探索・3. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  6. "Korean National Airlines - KNA - Koreanair". www.timetableimages.com. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  7. "Northwest timetable, 1955".



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