Pobedilovo Airport (IATA: KVX, ICAO: USKK) — an airport with the status of federal significance, located 22 kilometers southwest of the center Kirov. It serves regional flights across Russia.
The airfield's operator is Pobedilovo Airport JSC.
Fileysky airfield
One of the first airfields in Kirov was located in the Fileyka area. It was used during the Great Patriotic War for the needs of the evacuated Avitek plant. Prior to that, in the 1930s, rare flights of local aviation were carried out from the Poroshinsky field.
After the war, the airfield was used for passenger transportation. Fileysky airfield was in regular communication with regional centers: Soviet, Yaransk, Sanchur and others. In addition, the airfield served a number of allied air lines: Moscow-Gorky-Kirov-Syktyvkar, Leningrad-Kirov-Chelyabinsk, Moscow-Kirov-Vorkuta, lines to Kazan and Voronezh.
The airfield's infrastructure consisted of wooden buildings. The two-story building housed a command post and cash desks. There was a restaurant in a separate house. The writer Evgeny Milchakov described it this way: "The choice of drinks is exceptional. Yugoslav cognac..., Cuban rum, Polish vodka, Bulgarian wines. Beer of different varieties. After the end of the working day, engineers and craftsmen from the numbered enterprise liked to gather in the restaurant (clean, tasty, inexpensive and not far on foot)." There was also a hotel, a children's room, a library and a post office for passenger service.
There were An-2 (passenger, sanitary, forest protection) and Li-2 aircraft here.
The current airport
The airfield in Pobedilovo was established in 1941 and was used as a military reserve. In 1964, this site was deemed suitable for the construction of a new civilian airport.
In 1969, the existing Pobedilovo airport was built, and the old airfield on Fileika was abandoned. The last aircraft to land on it in 1981 was the An-8 transport aircraft, which became a monument to Fillet and was later converted into the Eaglet children's cinema. Today, part of the former airfield is built up with cottages, part is overgrown with bushes.
The airport got its name from the village, near the territory of which it is located. However, initially this name was not fixed and was mentioned only by the people, the official name was "Kirov Airport". It was only in 2012 that the airport received its current name.
As eyewitnesses recall, the airport was always clean and well maintained, tickets were cheap, and delays almost never occurred. Flights were not only to neighboring regions, but also to regional centers of the region.
The modern stage
In 2006, the reconstruction of the runway to Class B began. In 2013, all work on the reconstruction of the runway was completed. After the technical flight in 2014, the strip was put into operation.
On the eve of the 650th anniversary of the city, a large-scale reconstruction of the airport was completed in 2024. The premises and the facade of the building were renovated, and the number of parking spaces was increased. An expanded business lounge and a high-comfort lounge have been added. The recreation area was also renovated, another security checkpoint, a mother and child room, toilets, and a cafe were opened. The second floor of the airport was opened, which had been mothballed for a long time.
By 2035, the geography of flights is expected to expand: to Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, Petrozavodsk, Tyumen, Novosibirsk, Chelyabinsk, Ufa, Omsk, Voronezh, Yekaterinburg. The construction of a second terminal is planned.
