Departure
97%
vs 95% ▲ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Göteborg Landvetter Airport is Sweden's second-largest airport, lying in Härryda Municipality some 20 km east-southeast of central Gothenburg. Operated by Swedavia, it is a major international gateway with a single long, ILS-equipped hard-surface runway, and is of particular interest to simulator pilots for its exposure to crosswinds and low cloud on approach. It opened in 1977 as the successor to the old Torslanda Airport and remains Gothenburg's sole commercial airfield.
Göteborg Landvetter Airport, identified by the ICAO code ESGG and IATA code GOT, is the principal airport serving the Gothenburg region of western Sweden and the country's second-busiest airport after Stockholm Arlanda. It is owned and operated by Swedavia, the state airport company, and handles a substantial mix of scheduled passenger, charter and freight traffic. For a simulator pilot the field is notable for its long, well-lit instrument runway, its CAT IIIb-capable ILS, and a reputation for fog and crosswinds that make it a genuinely challenging destination to fly into.
The airport sits in Härryda Municipality, Västra Götaland County, about 11 nautical miles (20 km) east-southeast of Gothenburg and roughly 40 km west of Borås. It occupies elevated terrain around 150 metres above sea level, a siting that contributes to the airfield's tendency to suffer low cloud and fog. Landvetter replaced the former Torslanda Airport west of Gothenburg as the city's main airfield when it opened, and since the closure of Gothenburg City Airport (the former Säve military base) to commercial traffic, it is now the only commercial airport serving Gothenburg.
The airfield has a single physical runway, 03/21, orientated north-northeast/south-southwest. It is 10,787 feet (roughly 3,287 metres) long with a hard surface, is lit, and is served by an instrument landing system, making it usable in low-visibility conditions typical of the airport's often foggy, elevated location.
Pilots can expect an ATIS broadcast on 118.375 MHz, Ground on 121.9 MHz, a Göteborg Approach/TCA frequency of 124.68 MHz, and Göteborg Tower on 118.6 MHz. The runway is equipped with an ILS, and since 2015 the airport has had a CAT IIIb system installed, allowing landings in fairly dense fog for suitably equipped aircraft, though not all aircraft using the field carry the necessary onboard systems.
Göteborg Landvetter Airport was inaugurated by King Carl XVI Gustaf on 3 October 1977, construction having begun in 1972, and it replaced Torslanda Airport west of Gothenburg as the city's main airport. In 2001 some budget carriers began using the former military airfield at Säve, renamed Gothenburg City Airport, but that field closed to commercial traffic over the winter of 2014-2015 owing to reconstruction needs, pushing roughly a million additional annual passengers onto Landvetter. The airport's location, some 150 metres above sea level and prone to fog and low cloud, together with a runway orientation that often produces strong crosswinds, has long been a point of comment; a CAT IIIb instrument landing system was installed in 2015 to allow landings in dense fog. In April 2015 Swedavia announced a contract with DHL Express for a substantially enlarged cargo terminal as part of wider Airport City plans, and the passenger terminal itself was extended in stages through the 2010s and again in 2023. On 28 April 2023 Scandinavian Airlines began a nonstop service to New York-EWR, restoring a long-haul link to the city last served directly some forty years earlier.
Landvetter remains Sweden's second-largest airport by passenger numbers, recording just over 5.3 million passengers in 2024, and continues to operate as western Sweden's principal international gateway with a large scheduled and charter network as well as significant air freight traffic. The single instrument runway, fitted with ILS and CAT IIIb low-visibility capability, keeps the field operational in the fog and low cloud that can affect its elevated site.
