Odate–Noshiro Airport
Odate–Noshiro Airport is an airport in Kitaakita, Akita Prefecture, Japan and is west of Ōdate, at above sea level. It is also informally known as Akita North Airport.
History
Efforts to build an airport in northern Akita Prefecture began in the late 1980s. The airport site was decided in April 1989, and construction began in 1994.Odate–Noshiro Airport opened on 18 July 1998, with Air Nippon services to Tokyo Haneda Airport and Osaka Itami Airport, and seasonal service to Sapporo New Chitose Airport. Services to Sapporo were discontinued in November 1999 followed by services to Osaka in May 2010. From January 2011, charter flight operations began to Taiwan's Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
The airport is located in northern Akita Prefecture, primarily serving the city of Noshiro and the surrounding region, which includes tourist destinations such as Shirakami-Sanchi, Lake Towada, and Towada-Hachimantai National Park. The airport terminal building makes extensive use of the local Akita cedar wood. However, the low local population density and competition from the Akita Shinkansen and its proximity to the nearby Aomori Airport have limited profitable airline operations.