Das'gotn National International Airport

Das'gotn National International Airport is the main international airport serving Das'gotn, Shushtrepistaz. It is located 20 mi east of Das'gotn's city center surrounded by rural and some suburbs. The airport is owned and operated by the Government of Shushtrepistaz, under the cities metropolitan transport authority. The airport's IATA Airport Code, DAS.

Das'gotn National has rapidly ascended in rankings of the world's busiest airports in the past decade. It had become the second busiest airport in Asia in 2005, and fell to third busiest airport in Asia in terms of passenger traffic and total traffic movements by 2010, in 2011 it became the second largest airport, after a decline in transit at Tokyo Haneda. Das'gotn National International Airport is currently the 4th busiest airport in the world in terms of passenger throughput behind London Heathrow Airport. The airport registered 682,584 aircraft movements (take-offs and landings), which ranked 7th in the world in 2010. In terms of cargo traffic, Das'gotn airport has also witnessed slower growth. As of now it is the 30th in the world, and second to Angel's Bay Homunko International in Shushtrepistaz, with 684,310 tonnage a year.

Das'gotn National International Airport is the main hub for Sylokash, the main carrier of the Shushtrepistaz, which flies to around 201 destinations (excluding cargo) from Das'gotn. Shudonese Airways, the flag carrier, has also used this airport as a hub holding 122 destinations from Das'gotn.

History
Das'gotn Airfield first opened in 1929 on a small piece land near the Northern Coast. It was Shushtrepistaz' first civil airport at the time it was constructed, just finished 10 days before the construction of Rikia Airfield, and took over from the army air base at Tachikawa as the main operating base of Shukkon Airways, then the country's flag carrier. During the 1930s, Das'gotn handled flights to destinations in Japan, Korea and Manchuria and Okatawabashi. In 1939, the airport's first runway was extended to 720 m and a second 900m runway was almost finished.

Post War
Pacific Airlines, as well as Shushtrepistaz Airways had began operations in 1949. During its first years of postwar civil operations, Das'gotn International Airport was overcrowded, and needed a second terminal, in 1951, bidding began to open Terminal 2 (Know known as Terminal X), which was the oldest Terminal in use in airport still, used for Cargo and Regional Transit. Terminal one later that year was renovated for International Flights. American carriers began service to Das'gotn in the 1950s, with Pan American World Airways as well as Northwest Orient. East Asian Transport and Aeroflot began cooperative service from Das'gotn to Moscow in 1967. The Central Railway began service between Das'gotn International and Downtown Das'gotn in 1964. A new runway and international terminal, now known as Terminal A was completed in 1970, but demand continued to outpace expansion. The government anticipated this growth in the early 1960s. As a new airport had planned, and was in construction. During the same time, a large international traffic boom caused by a merger of East Asia Transport and Pacific Airlines had caused a privately funded construction of Terminal B in 1971. At the same time JAL had began to set up operations, as national tensions began to cool.

New Developments
On November 26, 1974, the airport authority began work on a new terminal as well as 2 runways north of the airport's original main 2 runway. A fourth passenger terminal opened in December 1975 at a cost of $1.36 billion. The new terminal had approximately 1.5 times the space of the older terminal which was about to be replaced, but its anti-congestion benefits were delayed because of the need to close and renovate much of the older terminal. The airport's land situation also meant that the taxiway to the new terminal was one-way for much of its length, and that taxi times between the terminal and runway were up to 30 minutes. The C runway (16L/34R) opened on April 17, 1978. The new runway opened up additional slots, particularly for carriers from other Asian countries, who were favored disproportionately over American and European incumbents. In particular, Taiwan flag carriers China Airlines and EVA Air were granted slots upon opening of the new runway and were able to move their Das'gotn. In 1978 Das'gotn Kyriko Airport had opened to international travel, which it had gained a small amount of slots, the airport became more of a drain to the city, as it in 1980 was reduced to a domestic airport. Das'gotn International Airport gained its signature "National" word in 1981 as it became the largest airport in the nation. The airport had began to work on Runway D, as well started to plan for Runway E. In 1985 the first 3 terminals had been planned for decommission, as well as plans to build three new ones. After a court case with the Shudonese Historical Society the first terminal had remained, but was renovated and named Terminal X. Terminals B, C, and D had completed construction in 1990.

Collapse and Revival
In the same year of completion of construction, the largest airline collapsed, Shukkon Airways after a large scandal. This lead up to 1991 where Pan American Airways had ended its service leaving Terminal A abandoned. The airport authority began to plan to reduce the airport size, but a larger demand had began coming from the Oceanic Airways Group which had taken up Terminal 1 along with Delta Air Lines and United Airlines who started flights to the airport. In 2003 Calaréann Airways had made Das'gotn International Airport a hub, causing a fill-up of the remaining Terminals, as well as a construction of Terminal E, which had filled up and finished in 2007. In 2007 the airport had gone under major renovations. In 2011 after the merger of PA Pacific Airlines and its foreign counterparts, the airport had gotten a request to open a new Terminal, this known as Terminal F or Terminal S, would be the second largest behind the international terminal.

Terminals A
Terminal 1, with 18 Gates, opened on January 12, 1970 and replaced Terminal X. Terminal A was closed for renovation from 2007, during which all airlines operated from Terminal B. It was the operational base for Shushtrepistaz Air and Oceanic Air Transport domestic routes and a few other airlines such as AirWest and Bay Air, and was is also named the Domestic Terminal.

Terminals B
Terminal B opened on November 1, 1990, it has 48 gates. This terminal was to replace the Terminal 2, during the 2007 renovation, it was the one of the fully operational Terminals while the latter was undergoing renovation, cramping all airlines into this terminal despite it being far bigger than Terminal A and can handle twenty aircraft at docks connecting directly to the terminal building. This terminal now houses most of the airlines going international like Atarashima Air, Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Shushtrepistaz Air, Oceanic Air Transport, AirWest, Continental Airlines, Qatar Airways, Etihad, Indian Airlines, Thai Airways International, the South Uroborian Airways hub and China Southern Airlines.

Systems, Security, and luggage
Terminal B has a 200,000-square-metre transportation centre with 7,000 car-parking space. The transportation centre has designated traffic lanes for airport buses, taxis and private vehicles. Travelers bound for TB can exit their vehicles and enter TB via an aisle within five minutes. The transportation centre also has a high speed rail station connecting to downtown. Terminal B has 150 elevators, escalators or moving walkways. Each row of seats in the waiting area has electrical outlets. Every restroom has a diaper changing station. There is also a room for travelers with disabilities. One of Terminal B's highlights is the US$240 million luggage-transfer system. The luggage system is equipped with yellow carts, each of which has a code, matching the bar code on every piece of luggage loaded on it, allowing easy and accurate tracking. More than 200 cameras are used to monitor activities in the luggage area. The luggage system can handle 18,200 pieces of luggage per hour. After luggage is checked in at any one of the 292 counters at Terminal B, they can be transferred at a speed of ten metres per second. Even for international routes, luggage can travel from plane to luggage system in five minutes. Arriving passengers should be able to begin retrieving their luggage within 4.5 minutes after airplanes are unloaded. Along with X-ray scanners, additional equipment conducts checks such as for explosives. Passengers will be able to check in their luggage at the airport several hours or even a day before their flight. The airport will store them in its luggage system and then load them on the correct aircraft.

Facilities
The TB food-service area is one of the largest food courts in the world with 72 stores provide food ranging from formal dishes to fast food, from Shudonese to western, from bakery goods to ice cream. Airport officials have promised that people who buy products at the airport will see the same prices as in the city.

Terminal B shares part of its space with Terminal S, including its In addition to food and beverage businesses, there is a 12,600-square-metre (136,000 sq ft) domestic retail area, a 10,600-square-metre (114,000 sq ft) duty-free-store area and a nearly 7,000-square-meter convenience-service area, which includes banks, business centres, Internet services and more. At 45,200 square metres (487,000 sq ft).

Terminals C
Terminal C has 22 gates. Terminal C opened alongside Terminal B to replace to aging 3 and was Shukkon Airways main terminal. After the collapse of the airline, it has been home to LionBlue, Virgin Australia, Air China, Korean Air, Lufthansa, and American Airlines.

Terminals D
Terminal D has 18 gates. The terminal is held occupied by mostly American and European Airlines including Delta Airlines. British Airways, United Airlines, Aer Stoke, KLM, and Aeroméxico.

Terminals E
Terminal E unlike B,C, and D were built after a revival of the airport, the Terminal contains 24 gates and is home to Emirates, Aeroflot, Royal Ascadylea, Singapore Airlines and Calaréann Airways which takes most of the terminal.

Terminals S
Would be the second largest terminal behind terminal B, holding only Sylokash Airways domestic and international flights, the terminal currently is open since January 2012, and currently holds most of the outgoing passengers in the Airport, The budget of the expansion is US$3.5 billion. Terminal S is the third largest terminal in space 886,000 square metres (10,610,000 sq ft) in total floor area at its opening. It features a main passenger terminal, two satellite concourses and five floors above ground and two underground. Terminal S1 is dedicated for domestic flights, Terminal S3 for international flights, the terminal also is equipped with a mall, that is 80% operational and is a frequent for many passengers. It currently has 36 gates

Terminals X
Terminal X is referred as the Cargo Terminal, as most of the cargo is moved through that area, but is also home to small charter airlines.

Terminal XR
Is the far side of terminal X that has a small runway used for Recreational Use, the runway is not considered part of the airport as well as Terminal XR. Terminal XR has been set aside for emergency landings but has been under scrutiny as the runway is too small to handle large jets.

People Movers
Das'gotn National Airport has 2 main people mover monorail lines that connect Terminal A, B, C, and S as well as a secondary monorail connecting B, D, and E, the monorail is automated and handles around 50 passengers a ride, the monorail also goes underground as well as inside terminals to reach people, Terminal C and D have exterior stations due to infrastructural problems. The monorail also connects with the international and domestic parking lots.

Charter Buses
There are charter buses connecting Terminal S with Terminal X, mainly to move people from Sylokash Airways to Sylokash Express, as well as charter buses that connect to hotels nearby and Terminal B.

Other Facilities
AeroSky an airline alliance was founded in 2011 by various international airlines and Sylokash Airways have a airline operations office located at the end of Terminal B at the fifth and sixth floor of the Co-Shared Hub zone for most of the carriers besides Sylokash. The fourth floor is also used partially by the alliance offices but is still used primarily for top floors for airline lounges. Due to expansion needs AeroSky needed to partially move their operations office to the north end of Terminal B where it occupies the fifth floor and partially the fourth floor due to airline club space.

SPSExpress (SPE) has its headquarters on the grounds of Das'gotn National Airport, on the third floor of terminal B. The building section was originally planned for large aircraft but was converted in 2004. Sylokash Connect and Sylokash Express management offices are located in a connected building at the end of the S terminal; most of the complex is not considered in the airport.

DAS has three on-site hotels, two that are connected to terminal B and one in Terminal S. The Terminal S hotel, known as the Connector is run by Sylokash Hotel Services and is used mainly by connecting flight patrons. Most rooms are rented as an add-on to a flight ticket but a check-in desk still exists. The terminal B hotels are operated by independent operations and are aimed at connecting flight flyers as well as delayed flight.

Terminal XR has a aviation museum that displays a full 747-100 outside the complex, located in the museum is history of the airport and aviation within the nation and around the world. The aviation museum also has a annex on the fourth floor of terminal C which contains details of flight and use of flights.

Transit Center
Das'gotn National International Airport offers a transit hub in the center of the airport, it is located on the adjacent to Airport Expressway. It is one of the harbor stations on the Shudonese High-Speed Railway. Completed in October 2001, the station has 20 platforms and 35 tracks. It serves Das'gotn-Dras'kon high speed railway, Shudon National Railways, and Haiyden Railways passenger trains.

Rail
Das'gotn National Airport has plenty of rail connections, with airport express trains, commuter trains and High Speed Rail running on various routes to Das'gotn and beyond. Shudon National Railways and Haiyden Railways operate in the airport. Trains to and from the airport stop at in the Transportation Center and Terminal B.

Shudon National Railways transit runs from the airport throughout the nation at the Transportation Center. The trainsets divide at Das'gotn, with one set looping clockwise around central Das'gotn to the south, stopping at many stations in city and head towards Czrik. Trains normally run non-stop between the Airport and Das'gotn, but during rush hours they also stop at Hokkai and Mailo to accommodate commuters. The daytime non-stop service takes 55 min from the airport to Tokyo. A single trip from the airport to Central Station costs 2.50 USD, while a trip to more distant stops costs up to 85.20 USD. All seating is reserved.

Car
The airport can be accessed either by the Airport Expressway located on the south end of the airport near Terminal A, or National Route 8 which connects to Terminal C and ends at the Airport Expressway. The airport is located 20 miles (32 km) east of downtown Das'gotn and 184 (296 km) miles east of Dras'kon. It is nearby National Route 915 that connects to National Route 1 2 miles from the airport.

Parking
The airport provides both short-term and long-term parking facilities that are joint connected to Terminal A, B and S.

Bus
There are regular bus services to all Terminals every 25 minutes that have service to major hotels and railway stations Das'gotn Metropolitan Area. These are often slower than the trains because of traffic jams. The main operators of the bus service are run by the Metropolitan Transport Association but private companies do provide charter, tour and scheduled services through the city.

Taxi
Fixed rate taxi service to Das'gotn, Dras'kon, Bakudo, and Klorang are available. Non-fixed rate taxis are located throughout the airport.