Alula Aba Nega Airport
Alula Aba Nega Airport (IATA: MQX, ICAO: HAMK), also known as Mekelle Airport, is an airport serving Mekelle, the capital city of the Tigray Region in northern Ethiopia. The airport is located 10 km (6 miles) southeast of the city.[4]
Alula Aba Nega Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Ethiopian Airports Enterprise | ||||||||||
| Serves | Mekelle, Ethiopia | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 7,403 ft / 2,256 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 13°28′02″N 039°32′00″E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  HAMK Location in Ethiopia (Tigray region in red) | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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History
This airport was built in the late 1990s to replace an older one located 7 km (4 miles) from Mekelle. The airport was named after the famous Ethiopian military leader Ras Alula, also known as Alula Aba Nega[4] (Nega was his favorite horse, following the custom of using "Abba" plus attaching the horse's name to that of a well-known warrior's first name). He is well known for his battles against Italy, the Ottoman Turks, Egypt and the Battle of Adwa. When the airport first opened, it had one unpaved runway 3,000 metres (9,843 feet) long, with 21 flights to Addis Ababa, 4 to Shire and 2 to Humera.[5]
Facilities
The airport lies at an elevation of 7,406 feet (2,257 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 11/29 with an asphalt surface measuring 3,604 by 43 metres (11,824 ft × 141 ft).[1]
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Ethiopian Airlines[6] | Addis Ababa, Axum, Humera, Shire |
Incidents
On 22 August 1982, Douglas DC-3 ET-AHP of Ethiopian Airlines was damaged beyond repair in a take-off accident.[7]
References
- Airport information for HAMK Archived 2013-10-06 at the Wayback Machine from DAFIF (effective October 2006)
- Airport information for MQX at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- List of the busiest airports in Africa
- "Mekele Alula Aba Nega International Airport". Ethiopian Airports Enterprise. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - "Local History in Ethiopia" (PDF). The Nordic Africa Institute. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
- "Domestic route map". Ethiopian Airlines. Archived from the original on 2012-12-04. Retrieved 2012-07-21.
- "ET-AHP Accident report". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 25 July 2010.