Departure
96%
vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Gabala International Airport (UBBQ) serves the resort town of Gabala in north-west Azerbaijan and is best known to the wider aviation world for its long, ILS-equipped runway capable of handling large jet types. Opened in 2011 and briefly used as a base for foreign military aircraft, it remains a lightly used but well-equipped field of interest to any simulator pilot wanting a taste of Caucasus flying.
Gabala International Airport lies close to the town of Gabala (also rendered Qabala or Qəbələ) in the Gabala district of north-west Azerbaijan, an area known for tourism and resort development at the foot of the Caucasus. The airport is government-operated and was built to serve both scheduled passenger traffic and the wider Gabala region. For a simulator pilot it is notable chiefly for its very long single runway with a Category II instrument landing system, a combination that gives it an operational character well beyond its modest traffic levels.
The airport sits within Azerbaijani airspace serving the town of Gabala, in the north-west of the country. No specific airspace classification, FIR boundary details or details of nearby controlled airspace are given in the available material, so pilots planning a visit should consult current Azerbaijani aeronautical publications for controlled airspace and any restricted areas in the vicinity.
Gabala has a single physical runway, 16/34, with a hard surface and a length of 11,384 feet. Both directions are equipped with an instrument landing system, giving the field capability for precision approaches in poor weather.
No air-ground or air traffic control communication frequencies for Gabala International Airport are recorded in the available aeronautical data. The runway is equipped with an ILS, described elsewhere as a Category II system on runway 16, permitting approaches down to a decision height and visibility suited to low-ceiling operations, though the source material does not give specific navaid frequencies or approach minima.
No published circuit height, joining procedure or noise abatement information for Gabala is available in the sources consulted.
No published visual reference points for Gabala are given in the available sources. The airport lies near the town of Gabala, a recognisable resort settlement in the foothills of the Caucasus in north-west Azerbaijan, which serves as the principal ground reference for the area.
Construction of Gabala Airport began in 2011 and the airport was officially opened by President Ilham Aliyev on 17 November 2011, the same year in which it was granted international status. Its first international service began in November 2012, when Russian carrier Ural Airlines opened a route between Moscow and Gabala. The passenger terminal was subsequently expanded in 2013 after passenger numbers exceeded the capacity of the original building. In 2020, ahead of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, six F-16 fighter jets of the Turkish Air Force were stationed first at Ganja International Airport and then moved to Gabala during joint Azerbaijani-Turkish military exercises, remaining there through the course of the war; President Aliyev stated publicly that the aircraft did not take part in operations in Karabakh but would defend Azerbaijan in the event of third-party intervention.
Gabala continues to handle scheduled service, with Azerbaijan Airlines having operated flights to Baku. Passenger and movement numbers have historically been modest, reflecting the airport's role serving a resort town rather than a major hub. No information on fuel availability, operating hours, based flying clubs, or simulator scenery packages for the field is given in the available sources.