Departure
97%
vs 95% ▲ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Tivat Airport (LYTV) is Montenegro's second international gateway, tucked into the narrow Tivatsko polje valley on the southern edge of Tivat and just metres from the Bay of Kotor. Its single runway and challenging terrain-bound approach have earned it the nickname 'the Kai Tak of Europe' among visiting pilots, making it a distinctive and demanding VFR and IFR destination on the Montenegrin coast.
Tivat Airport sits in the Mrčevac area on the southern outskirts of Tivat, serving the town and the wider Bay of Kotor region as one of Montenegro's two international airports, the other being Podgorica. It is operated by Airports of Montenegro and is the hub for Air Montenegro. The field is best known among pilots for its dramatic setting: the runway lies along a narrow valley hemmed in by mountains, with one threshold almost touching the coastline of the Bay of Kotor, giving rise to its informal comparison with the old Kai Tak Airport in Hong Kong. This combination of scenery and a demanding approach makes it a notable stop for anyone flying the Montenegrin coast in the simulator.
The airport lies about 3 km south of central Tivat, roughly 7 km from Kotor and 20 km north-west of Budva, within the Tivatsko polje valley, which is surrounded by mountainous terrain. The runway orientation follows the axis of this valley. The threshold of runway 14 is only about 100 m from the shoreline of the Bay of Kotor, placing arriving and departing traffic close to the water on that side of the field.
Tivat has a single physical runway, 14/32, measuring 8,183 ft and surfaced in hard standing (asphalt). Both directions are lit, and an ILS is available for runway 32.
Published frequencies for the field are an arrival frequency of 118 MHz and a combined approach/tower frequency also on 118 MHz.
The approach to runway 32 requires a descent into the enclosed Tivatsko polje valley followed by a turn of around 20 degrees shortly before landing to align with the runway, a demanding sequence that has given the airport its 'Kai Tak of Europe' reputation among pilots. As of 2024 the instrument approach to runway 14 is no longer published on charts, as it involved an even more challenging circle-to-land manoeuvre.
The valley of Tivatsko polje, flanked by steep mountainous terrain, is the dominant visual feature for locating the field, with the runway aligned along its length. The Bay of Kotor coastline lies immediately off the runway 14 threshold, and the mountain backdrop around the airport is pronounced enough that the field is a popular spot for plane spotters seeking unobstructed views of arriving and departing aircraft.
Tivat Airport opened on 30 May 1957 with a 1,200 m grass runway, a small apron, a passenger terminal and a control tower, initially handling domestic services to Belgrade, Zagreb and Skopje flown by JAT with Douglas DC-3 and Ilyushin Il-14 aircraft. Between 1968 and 1971 the airport underwent major expansion and reopened on 25 September 1971 with a new 2,500 m by 45 m asphalt runway, an extended apron and a new terminal. Further work followed after the airport was damaged in the 1979 earthquake. Ownership passed from Jat Airways to the state-owned Airports of Montenegro on 23 April 2003. The passenger terminal was reconstructed in 2006, and as noise pollution became a concern in the mid-2000s, older and louder airliners such as the Ilyushin Il-86 were banned from the field and redirected to Podgorica. A further expansion of the terminal building was completed in December 2018.
Tivat Airport today operates as a busy seasonal international airport, with more than 80 percent of its passenger traffic concentrated in the May to September period, and it currently serves as a hub for Air Montenegro alongside a wide range of seasonal European carriers. Growing summer traffic volumes have at times outpaced terminal capacity, leading to periods of congestion during the peak season.