Nice Côte d'Azur Airport () is an international airport located southwest of Nice, in the Alpes-Maritimes department of France. It is the third busiest airport in France and serves as a focus city for Air France and an operating base for easyJet. In 2019, it handled 14,485,423 passengers. The airport is positioned west of the city centre, and is the principal port of arrival for passengers to the Côte d'Azur.
Due to its proximity to Monaco, it also serves as that city-state's airport, with helicopter service linking the principality and airport. Some airlines market Monaco as a destination via Nice Airport.
Facilities
The airport covers an area of over partially reclaimed from the sea, with used by its two parallel runways and the 14 passenger terminals and freight terminal. The airport's theoretical capacity is 13 million annual passengers and 52 movements (26 landings) per hour. Terminals 1 and 2 are linked by a tram service. The route stops at the airport and connects with the city centre via the “Jean Médecin” station, and with the port via the “Port Lympia” station. Buses that also connect the car parks with the terminals.
Terminal 1
Terminal 1 features 25 gates on a space of . It features flights to domestic, Schengen and non-Schengen destinations and has a capacity of 4.5 million passengers per year. A business center is located at Terminal 1 containing eight rooms and a conference room with a capacity of 250 people.
Terminal 2
Terminal 2 is the newer and larger facility and is equipped to handle flights to all destinations. There are 29 gates on a space of . The terminal has a capacity of 8.5 million passengers per year.
Business Aviation Terminal
The Business Aviation Terminal, located next to Terminal 2, covers an area of . Opened in 2010, this terminal contains the operations rooms, VIP lounges, crew lounges and offices of several business aviation companies.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights to and from Nice:
Cargo
Statistics
Ground transportation
The airport is located on the western end of the Promenade des Anglais. Since December 2018, Nice tramway line 2 connects the airport to the Port of Nice (Lympia Port) via the Grand Arénas interchange (where additionally the relocated regional train station Nice-Saint-Augustin is situated), replacing two former bus routes (98 and 99) to the airport. The tram runs every 8 minutes during the day. There's also tramway line 3 which runs from the airport to the western suburbs. Additionally, bus route 12 connects the airport with Promenade des Artes via the old town.
Société Naviplane Ferry
In 1969 an experimental and short-lived ferry service utilized two N.300 Naviplane hovercraft. The airport was connected to Cannes, Saint-Tropez, Monaco and San-Remo.
Accidents and incidents
On 9 April 1949, SNCASE Languedoc P/7 F-BATU of Air France overran the runway and was damaged beyond economic repair. On 3 March 1952, SNCASE Languedoc P/7 F-BCUM of Air France crashed shortly after take-off, killing all 38 people on board. The cause of the accident was that the aileron controls had jammed. The aircraft was operating a domestic scheduled passenger flight from Nice to Orly Airport, Paris.
See also
List of the busiest airports in France
Notes
References
External links
Aéroport Nice Côte d'Azur (official site) Aéroport de Nice – Côte d'Azur (Union des Aéroports Français)