Edinburgh Airport

The site of today's Edinburgh Airport was initially used around 1916 by the Royal Flying Corps. It came to be known as RAF Turnhouse, and the 77 Squadron was based here. The first paved runways were laid in 1939. Later, in 1947, a civil air transport service to London began. In 1956 a Civil Aviation terminal with the capacity to handle 100,000 passengers a day was opened. Yet another terminal became available in 1977. This one was designed to manage more than 1.5 million travelers per year. Passenger numbers exceeded 1.6 million in 1986, and that number hit the 3 million mark by 1994. In 1995 the Stakis Edinburgh Airport Hotel opened.