Ramon International Airport in the Timna Valley, southern Israel
Ramon International Airport in the Timna Valley, southern IsraelFlash 90

The Israel Police has completed its preparations for the opening of the Ramon airport on Monday with the opening of a new police station.

This police station will operate under the command of a police officer with the rank of Superintendent.

The commander of the Eilat region, Sami Marciano, added: "We are now ready to provide a police response in the operation of the airfield. We have brought equipment and technological means to the police station that will be used in the field soon."

The Ramon International Airport is the first international civil airport to be built since the establishment of the state. More than NIS 1.7 billion ($460 million) has been invested in the construction of the airport.

The airport's operations will gradually expand gradually. It will open with domestic flights with the Arkia and Israir airlines before expanding to international flights in the fall with direct flights to Europe.

The airport is named for Ilan Ramon, a former air force pilot who later became Israel's first astronaut. He was killed, along with the rest of the crew, when the space shuttle Columbia burned up on reentry in 2003.