Departure
94%
vs 95% ▼ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Hévíz–Balaton Airport (ICAO: LHSM) lies just south-southwest of the village of Sármellék in Zala County, western Hungary, midway between Lake Balaton and the spa town of Hévíz. Built on a former Cold War military base with a single long concrete runway and an ILS approach, it now handles seasonal charter traffic to Balaton's holiday region, making it a distinctive stop for pilots exploring western Hungary.
Hévíz–Balaton Airport, previously known as Sármellék International Airport, serves the Lake Balaton and Hévíz spa region of western Hungary. It is operated by Hévíz-Balaton Airport Kft. and today handles seasonal charter flights rather than dense scheduled traffic, giving it a quieter, more approachable character for visiting pilots than Hungary's main gateway at Budapest. Its long ex-military runway and full ILS make it a straightforward and interesting destination for a VFR or IFR cross-country into the Balaton area.
The airfield sits about 1 kilometre south-southwest of Sármellék village, west of Lake Balaton, within reach of Keszthely and the thermal spa town of Hévíz. The operator publishes conditions for use of the aerodrome and its TIZ1/TIZ2 Traffic Information Zone airspace, which pilots should consult before transiting or arriving in the area.
The airport has a single physical runway, 16/34, 8,200 feet (2,500 m) long with a hard surface. Runway 16 is equipped with an ILS approach; runway 34 has no instrument approach listed. The runway's substantial length reflects its origins as a military airfield.
Aeronautical information lists an AFIS/tower frequency of 127.6 MHz for the field, providing information and tower service to arriving and departing traffic. Runway 16 offers an ILS approach for instrument arrivals; pilots should refer to the operator's published approach charts for full procedural detail.
Traffic in the vicinity of the airfield is managed through a published TIZ1/TIZ2 Traffic Information Zone structure, with specific conditions for use set out by the airport operator; pilots planning a visit should review these before joining the zone. No further detail on circuit heights or joining patterns is available from the sources reviewed.
The airfield lies immediately south-southwest of Sármellék village, with Lake Balaton clearly visible to the east and the spa town of Hévíz a short distance to the south. Keszthely, on the lake's western shore, and Zalakaros further south provide useful landmarks when navigating toward the field from the Balaton basin.
A military airfield existed at the site in the 1940s and was paved in the 1950s, after which it served as a Hungarian military airport until 1960 and then as a Soviet military base from 1960 until the autumn of 1990. The current runway was constructed in 1982. The site opened as a public airport, Sármellék International Airport, in 1991, and became Hungary's second international airport on 15 May 2002. It was subsequently owned by the local governments of Sármellék and Zalavár and operated by an Irish-Hungarian investment group from 2004. Ryanair briefly operated services from London-Stansted and Hahn in 2005-2006. Financial difficulties led to closures over several winters between 2008 and 2012, and the airport was renamed Hévíz–Balaton Airport in April 2012. Wizz Air operated a seasonal route to Dortmund in 2022.
The airport now supports seasonal charter operations, including Tailwind Airlines services from Antalya and SundAir flights from Dresden, alongside general aviation traffic. For pilots, the operator publishes airport information, rates, aviation meteorology, approach charts and a ground handling request facility, along with details on TIZ1/TIZ2 airspace use and aerodrome obstacles.