Sal'sk 2 Airfield

Primarily economic reasons. The termination of state funding for the DOSAAF flight training program and the sharp decline in the economic viability of local passenger and utility aviation in post-Soviet Russia made the airfield unsustainable. The closure was not the result of a specific accident or military conversion.

The airfield is completely abandoned and in a state of advanced decay. Satellite imagery clearly shows the unpaved, X-shaped runway layout is heavily overgrown and unusable for any aviation purposes. The former administrative buildings, control point, and hangars are derelict, with some possibly being used for local agricultural storage or other non-aviation activities. The site is not maintained and is inaccessible for aircraft.

The airfield, known locally as Sal'sk (Yuzhny) or Sal'sk-2, served a dual purpose. Its primary role was as a DOSAAF (Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Army, Air Force, and Navy) training base. It provided initial flight training on light aircraft (like the Yak-52) and parachute jump training for civilians, many of whom would go on to military service. Secondly, it functioned as the civil airport for the city of Sal'sk, handling regional passenger and cargo flights as part of the extensive Soviet local air lines (MVL) network. It typically serviced small, robust aircraft like the Antonov An-2, connecting Sal'sk with the regional capital, Rostov-on-Don, and other towns in the oblast.

There are no known official plans or realistic prospects for reopening the airfield. The infrastructure is completely degraded and would require a full, costly reconstruction. Given the general decline of small-scale regional aviation in Russia and the presence of the large, active Salsk military air base nearby, there is no apparent economic or strategic incentive for its revival.