Balice Airport. 2010

Kraków 2010-06-23

Kraków-Balice Airport

Embraer ERJ-195 registration SP-LNC, PLL LOT. Balice 2012. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Embraer ERJ-195 registration SP-LNC, PLL LOT. Balice 2012. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

PLL LOT Embraer ERJ-195 aircraft registration SP-LNC, was delivered in August 2011.

2008 year.

The opening of the sky over the Atlantic for free competition of airlines has become a chance for further development of Balice. In March 2008, an open sky agreement between America and the European Union entered into force. Each airline could launch any number of flights across the Atlantic to any city. It was a chance for further development of Balice. Only planes from Okęcie and Balice flew from the Republic of Poland to the USA and Canada, and only native LOT Polish Airlines operated direct flights to America. Therefore, there was a real chance to increase the number of connections and at the same time the number of passengers.

It is estimated that the opening of the sky between the US and European Union countries resulted in a drop in ticket prices by about 30 percent. The fierce competition between traditional carriers (until now they had a monopoly on flying over the Atlantic) means that now a round-trip ticket with all fees on the Warsaw-New York route can be bought for as much as PLN 1,550 (Finnair carrier). To effectively fight for a passenger, you would need discounts even to the promotional price of PLN 600-700 per ticket.

Observation deck.

In 2008, a covered and glazed viewing terrace was opened in Terminal 1. The terrace has a length of about 50 meters. Exit to the observation deck is payable.

Observation deck. 2014 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Observation deck. 2014 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Observation deck. 2012 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Observation deck. 2012 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey parking. 2008 year.

Opposite Terminal 1 a multi-storey car park was built. There are 863 parking spaces on five floors. The building has a height of 17.5 m and a cubature of about 98 000 cubic meters. The building dimensions in the axes of the structure: length 121.28 m, width: 55.24 m. The parking lot structure is a monolithic reinforced concrete skeleton composed of longitudinal and transverse frames with columns fixed in a slab foundation and bolts fixed in columns, the floor slabs are based on longitudinal transoms. and transverse frames. The functional layout of the car park was based on the layout of semi-usable levels, accessible to vehicles via ramps. About 2,700,000 kg of steel and about 25,000 cubic meters of concrete were used for the building. The parking cost PLN 57 million. The car park was put into use in 2009.

Multi-storey car park under construction. 2008 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey car park under construction. 2008 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey car park under construction. 2008 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey car park under construction. 2008 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey car park under construction. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey car park under construction. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey parking. Vending machine. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey parking. Vending machine. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey parking. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey parking. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey parking. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey parking. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Multi-storey parking. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Multi-storey parking. 2011 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Chapel at the airport.

There is a chapel at every airport in Poland. The chapel is a small Christian sacred building, free-standing or connected to a larger architectural building. The chapel at the airport is a separate room with an altar, designed for individual prayer and other liturgical ceremonies, including the celebration of the Eucharist, or holy mouse. Contrary to popular belief, the chapel at the airport is not for people who are afraid of traveling by plane, but for people who have entrusted their lives to God. At terminal 1 in Balice, the chapel is located on the entresol. It is open 24 hours a day.

According to data from 2020, the priest and guardian of the chapel is priest Jacek Wróbel. Holy masses are celebrated every Sunday and church holidays at: 08; 00, 10; 00 and 12; 00.

Chapel at the Balice airport. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Chapel at the Balice airport. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Chapel at the Balice airport. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Chapel at the Balice airport. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Chapel at the Balice airport. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Chapel at the Balice airport. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Airport Rescue and Fire-Fighting Service. 2009 year.

Already in 2000, it was known that the location of the Airport Fire Brigade building did not meet the needs and standards. Located too far from DS and asymmetrical in relation to the middle zone. According to ICAO standards, access to the furthest point of the airport should not exceed 3 minutes, with a recommended 2 minutes. The construction of the new LSP facility with the location in the immediate vicinity of the runway, near its central zone, has become an important safety element.

On 17.05.2007, a new Airport Fire Brigade watchtower, located next to the airport control tower, was put into operation - this enabled the response time of rescue and firefighting services to be reduced to 90 seconds.

The Airport Rescue and Fire-Fighting Service secures all air operations carried out at Kraków Airport. It is equipped with modern rescue and firefighting equipment in accordance with ICAO standards and provides category VIII airport in the field of emergency rescue and firefighting protection. LSRG staff consists of 42 fully trained rescuers working in shifts, providing 24-hour airport fire protection.

Fighting vehicles of the Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Service in Balice.

Barracuda Jr 4x4: Water tank capacity 5,000 liters, Foam tank capacity 660 liters, Pump capacity 5,000 liters per minute, Water-foam monitor performance 3,200 liters per minute, Max speed 115 km / h, Acceleration (0-80 km / h) 25 seconds, Engine power 540 HP.

Barracuda 6x6: water tank capacity 10,000 liters, foam concentrate tank capacity 1,200 liters, pump capacity 5,000 liters per minute, water and foam monitor performance 4,500 liters per minute, max speed 110 km / h, acceleration (0-80 km / h) 35 seconds, Engine power 540 HP.

Eagle Six 6x6: Water tank capacity 12,000 liters, Foam tank capacity 1,500 liters, Pump capacity 5,400 liters per minute, Water-foam monitor performance 4,500 liters per minute, Max speed 120 km / h, Acceleration (0-80 km / h) 40 seconds, Engine power 580 HP.

Barracuda Boughton 6x6: Water tank capacity 12,000 liters, Foam tank capacity 1,440 liters, Pump capacity 5,400 liters per minute, Water-foam monitor performance 4,500 liters per minute, Max speed 110 km / h, Acceleration (0-80 km / h) 40 seconds, Engine power 580 HP.

Building of the Airport Fire and Rescue Guard. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Building of the Airport Fire and Rescue Guard. 2009 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Barracuda Jr. 4x4. 2014 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman
Barracuda Jr. 4x4. 2014 year. Photo by Karol Placha Hetman

Written by Karol Placha Hetman