 | It has been suggested that this article should be split into articles titled Ibaraki Airport and Hyakuri Air Base. (discuss) (September 2023) |
Hyakuri Airfield · Ibaraki Airport Hyakuri Air Base 百里飛行場/百里基地 Hyakuri Hikōjō · Hyakuri kichi | |||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Military/Public | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | JASDF | ||||||||||||||
| Serves | Mito, Japan | ||||||||||||||
| Location | Omitama, Ibaraki, Japan | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 107 ft / 33 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 36°10′54″N 140°24′53″E / 36.18167°N 140.41472°E | ||||||||||||||
| Website | Ibaraki Airport | ||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||
  IBR/RJAH Location in Japan  IBR/RJAH IBR/RJAH (Japan) | |||||||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2015) | |||||||||||||||
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Source: Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism[1] | |||||||||||||||
Ibaraki Airport (茨城空港, Ibaraki Kūkō) is an airport in the city of Omitama, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. It also serves as an air base for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) under the name Hyakuri Air Base, and is the closest fighter base to Tokyo. The airport was known as Hyakuri Airfield (百里飛行場, Hyakuri Hikōjō) prior to March 2010, when civil aviation operations began.[2]
The airport is located about 85 km (53 mi) north of Tokyo, and is intended to serve as a low-cost alternative to Tokyo's larger Narita and Haneda airports. Built as a result of large public investment, the airport has been criticized as being a symbol of wasteful government spending and as being unnecessary, opening with only one flight per day.[3]
As of 2023, a total of eight routes operate from the airport, all by low-cost carriers.[4] One advantage of Ibaraki is its closer access to Tsukuba Science City (via roadway), which has the highest concentration of technology firms in Japan. The airport currently has no advantage over Narita airport in public transport into Tsukuba, with both taking 1 hour.[5]
In May 2020, in order to attract more foreign visitors, Ibaraki Prefectural Government planned to adopt the English nickname "Tokyo Ibaraki International Airport" for overseas promotion.[6][7] However, due to the overwhelming opposition, the government ultimately chose the name "Ibaraki International Airport" in June 2020.[8]
- ^ "Ibaraki Airport" (PDF). Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
- ^ Cooper, Chris (2008-12-03). "Opening date". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2014-08-03.
- ^ Buerk, Roland (2010-03-11). "Japan opens 98th national airport in Ibaraki". BBC News. Retrieved 2014-08-03.
- ^ Airports tap budget airline benefits Archived March 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "University of Tsukuba | Access/Campus map | Directions to Tsukuba Campus". www.tsukuba.ac.jp. Archived from the original on 2007-11-19.
- ^ "Experts blasted for wanting to add 'Tokyo' to name of Ibaraki airport northeast of capital". Mainichi Daily News. June 1, 2020.
- ^ "Ibaraki Airport mulls name change to "Tokyo Ibaraki Airport" despite not being in Tokyo". Sorannews24. 1 June 2020.
- ^ "茨城空港、海外向けの愛称はTokyoなしの「Ibaraki International Airport」に". Impress (in Japanese). 5 June 2020.