Samos International Airport
airport on Samos Island, Greece

Samos International Airport "Aristarchos of Samos" (IATA: SMI, ICAO: LGSM) is an airport on Samos Island, Greece.
The airport is named after Aristarchos of Samos, an ancient astronomer and mathematician, and lies within 5 km (3.1 mi) from the nearby town of Pythagorio. The airport has a single short runway. The airport's surroundings leave little room for error or mistake on the behalf of the pilots – with nearby mountains and sea at the end of the short runway. In summer there are often strong Meltemi winds from the north, which further contribute to the difficulty of the landing.
There is one terminal building. There are six boarding gates, none of which have jet-bridges. Passenger facilities are split across two floors and include a duty-free shop and a small café.
History
The airport first operated in May 1976. In the late 1990s/early 2000s, the terminal was renovated: the capacity of the airport was increased to deal with increasing passenger numbers.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Samos International Airport” is airport on Samos Island, Greece. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Samos, International and Airport, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “airport on Samos Island, Greece” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1432699. Authority coordinates are 37.690, 26.913. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1976.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Samos International Airport”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Samos International Airport primary sources, Samos International Airport archive and Samos research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Samos International Airport”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Samos International Airport” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.