Vorkuta (Komi Vorkuta) is a city in Russia, located in the north of the Komi Republic, on the western slopes of the Polar Urals, on the Vorkuta River. It is located above the Arctic Circle, in the permafrost zone. The third largest city in the Arctic Circle. The administrative center of the city district of the same name. The easternmost city in Europe.
The name of the city was given by the Vorkuta river (originally - Varkuta-yakha, which is translated from the Nenets language as "a river teeming with bears" (nen. Vark - brown bear).
The history of Vorkuta begins with the discovery of the Vorkuta coal deposit by geologist G. A. Chernov in August 1930. In 1937, on the left bank of the Vorkuta River, the construction of mine No. 1 "Capital" began. By the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR dated January 9, 1940, the village of Kapitalnaya mine was transformed into the village of Vorkuta, Bolshezemelsky District (the center is in the village of Khosedo-Hard) of the Nenets National District of the Arkhangelsk Region. In October 1942, Vorkuta was transferred to the Kozhvinsky region of the Komi ASSR [2].
On November 26, 1943, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR, the village of Vorkuta was assigned the status of a city, after which it began to grow rapidly, reaching 100,000 in terms of population in the late 1970s. After the collapse of the USSR and the crisis in the mining industry, many residents left the city, leaving for the southern regions of the country. The mine, the first settlement on the site of the current city and once a large urban area, is now completely abandoned.
The airfield is capable of receiving aircraft An-12, An-24, An-26, Il-114, L-410, Tu-134, Yak-40, Yak-42, ATR 42, Bombardier CRJ 100/200, Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia, Embraer ERJ-145, Embraer E-190, Sukhoi Superjet 100 and lighter helicopters of all types. Runway Classification Number (PCN) 18 / R / B / X / T.
At the airport, in addition to civil aviation, the aviation of the FSB of the Russian Federation is based.
There is also a Soviet military airfield near Vorkuta.
