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Ramon Airport Near Eilat Opens; Winter Tourism Expected to Rise

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The new international airport opened outside Israel’s Red Sea resort of Eilat is expected to raise winter tourism from Europeans.

Named for the Israeli astronaut lost in the 2003 space shuttle disaster and his eldest son, who died in a 2009 air force accident, the Ilan and Asaf Ramon Airport reported carried a price tag of $500 million. It takes the place of the town’s municipal airport and an Israeli desert airbase that also accommodates civilian traffic. It was designed to handle about 2.5 million passengers a year.

According to the Israeli government, the airport replaces the two existing airports in Eilat, Eilat City Airport and Ovda Airport, and creates an impressive new international gateway to Southern Israel and the Red Sea.

The Ramon Airport is set to handle up to 2 million passengers a year upon opening with expansion allowing capacity of up to 4.2 million passengers by the year 2030. After opening, all domestic flights to the old Eilat City Airport from Tel Aviv and Haifa will move to the new Eilat Ramon Airport, whilst the airport will also begin handling low-cost and charter flights from Europe which currently land in Ovda Airport, including flights from Ryanair, WizzAir, easyJet, Transavia, SAS, Finnair, Edelweiss, and Ural Airlines.

Ramon Airport’s Terminal building is designed by Mann Shinar Architects, and will be able to handle 2 million passengers on opening, growing to 4 million passengers at a later stage. The terminal will feature all key facilities of a modern airport terminal including a duty free store, foreign exchange, information, and transportation services.

Apron parking space for 9 large and wide-body aircraft such as those used by European low-cost airlines Apron space for 4 turboprop aircraft such as those used on domestic flights from Tel Aviv and Haifa to Eilat.

The new Eilat Airport terminal has been designed using materials which reflect the right natural beauty of the Timna Valley where the airport is located. Many term the airport Timna Airport in light of the location, yet the official name is Ramon International Airport.

Airlines expected to operate at the new Eilat Ramon Airport include those currently serving Eilat Airport, Israir and Arkia, as well as the European airlines serving Ovda Airport including Ryanair, Wizz, and more European charter airlines during the winter season. Ryanair are expected to base several aircraft at the new airport and grow this hub into a focus city on their European route network.

Ramon Airport is just 18 km north of Eilat and will eventually be served by a rail link but for the time being there will be shuttles from Ramon Airport to Eilat for the 10 minute journey to the city, Israel’s window onto the Red Sea.

Because of its location at the head of the Red Sea, the Ramon Airport will also be a gateway for southern Jordan including the resort of Aqaba, and areas of Wadi Rum and Petra, as well as the Taba area of Sinai, in Egypt. And shuttle connections to both Jordan and Egypt are expected from Ramon Airport as the new airfield becomes a truly regional hub.

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