Korçë Teni Konomi City Hospital Heliport

The closure was not due to a single event but rather a combination of factors, primarily economic and logistical. The main reasons include:
1. **Economic Unviability:** The high operational and maintenance costs of a dedicated helicopter and certified helipad were likely prohibitive for a single regional hospital.
2. **Centralization of Services:** Albania has since developed a centralized National Medical Emergency Center (Qendra Kombëtare e Urgjencës Mjekësore), which operates a modern air ambulance service. Helicopters are dispatched from a central base (typically Tirana) to emergencies across the country, making individual, rudimentary hospital heliports obsolete.
3. **Obsolescence:** The heliport was likely a basic landing zone not meeting modern aviation or medical safety standards for lighting, approach paths, and emergency equipment.

The site of the former heliport is located on the grounds of the Korçë Regional Hospital ('Spitali Rajonal i Korçës Teni Konomi'). Satellite imagery of the coordinates (40.6114, 20.7852) shows no remaining evidence of a marked or dedicated helipad. The area is now occupied by hospital buildings, parking lots, and green spaces. The specific landing zone has been fully repurposed or absorbed into the hospital's general campus.

The Korçë Teni Konomi City Hospital Heliport was designated for medical evacuation (medevac) and emergency patient transport. Its primary historical significance is as an example of early efforts in post-communist Albania to establish modern medical infrastructure at a regional level. When active, its operations would have been crucial for transporting critically ill or injured patients from remote mountainous areas of the Korçë County to the hospital, or for transferring patients to more specialized facilities in the capital, Tirana. Operations were likely infrequent and conducted under Visual Flight Rules (VFR), primarily during daytime. The 'heliport' was most likely a simple, designated ground-level landing zone on the hospital property rather than a fully constructed and paved helipad.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the specific AL-0010 heliport. The current national air ambulance strategy does not rely on a network of small, local heliports. Any future need for air transport at the hospital would likely be met by one of two options:
1. Construction of a new, modern helipad on the hospital grounds that meets current safety and regulatory standards.
2. Use of the nearby Korçë Airfield (ICAO: LAKO), which the Albanian government has announced plans to redevelop into a functional airport for tourism and general aviation. This airfield could easily accommodate medical helicopters.