Kunovice

Kunovice (Kunowitz) is a town in Uherské Hradiště District in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,700 inhabitants.

Geography
Kunovice forms a conurbation with neighbouring Uherské Hradiště. It lies on the border between the Vizovice Highlands and Lower Morava Valley. The highest point is the hill Hluboček at 351 m above sea level. The Olšava River flows through the town and flows into the Morava, which forms the northern border of the territory.

History
The first written mention of Kunovice is from 1196. Until the establishment of Uherské Hradiště in the mid-13th century, it was an important administrative centre and defensive point with a castle. From the beginning of the 15th century, Kunovice was referred to as a market town.

In the 1930s, when an Avia factory was established, Kunovice began to transform from an agriculture community to an industrial one. In 1949–1954 and 1972–1990, Kunovice was an administrative part of Uherské Hradiště. Kunovice gained the town status in 1997.

Economy
Since 1936, the aircraft manufacturer Aircraft Industries (formerly Let Kunovice) has been based at Kunovice Airport near the town. The airport also hosts aircraft manufacturers Czech Sport Aircraft and Evektor-Aerotechnik. It is designated as a private international airport.

The largest Czech producer of refrigerated and durable food, Hamé s.r.o. company owned by the Orkla ASA conglomerate, has its headquarters in Kunovice.

Transport
The town is located at the intersection of two first-class roads: the I/50 road (part of the European route E50) from Brno to the Czech-Slovak border in Starý Hrozenkov and the I/55 road, which connects Olomouc and Zlín with the Czech-Austrian border in Břeclav.

Kunovice served by two train stations on different railway lines. The station Kunovice zastávka is located on the Brno–Staré Město line. The station Kunovice is located on the Staré Město–Bylnice line.

Sights
The landmark od Kunovice is the Church of Church of Saints Peter and Paul. Its core dates from the 16th century. The church was rebuilt and extended in 1759–1761.

The main tourist attraction is the Kunovice Aviation Museum, located at the town's airport. It was founded in 1970.

Notable people

 * Anton Gala (1891–1977), Slovak scientist, ophthalmologist and university professor
 * Josef Abrhám (1939–2022), actor; grew up here

Twin towns – sister cities
Kunovice is twinned with:
 * 🇰🇷 Pocheon, South Korea
 * 🇸🇰 Stará Turá, Slovakia
 * 🇺🇸 West, United States