Nelson Mandela International Airport

Nelson Mandela International Airport (IATA: RAI, ICAO: GVNP), also known as Praia International Airport, is the airport of Santiago Island in Cape Verde. It was opened in October 2005,[2] replacing the old Francisco Mendes International Airport. It is located about 3 km northeast of the city centre of Praia in the southeastern part of the island of Santiago.

Praia International Airport

Aeroporto Internacional Nelson Mandela
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorAeroportos Segurança Aérea (ASA)
LocationPraia, Cape Verde
Elevation AMSL70 m / 230 ft
Coordinates14°55′27.12″N 23°29′38.04″W
WebsiteRAI Website
Map
RAI is located in Cape Verde
RAI
RAI
Location in Cape Verde
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
3/21 2,100 6,890 asphalt
Statistics (2017)
Passengers662,356[1]
Operations11236[1]
Metric tonnes of cargo959[1]
A satellite image of the airport

History

The first flight to the new airport was on 6 October 2005 with a flight from Sal.[2] Even though the airport serves the capital and largest city, Praia as well as the island of Santiago, Cape Verde's busiest international airport is Amílcar Cabral International Airport located on the smaller island of Sal.[1]

In January 2012 a Cape Verde government statement noted that Praia International Airport was renamed after South Africa's former president Nelson Mandela, an icon for freedom in Africa, not without controversy.[3] Modernization works, including a new departures hall, were scheduled for completion in July 2018.[4]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Praia Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
Air Senegal Dakar–Diass[5]
ASKY Airlines Dakar–Diass, Lomé[6]
Azores Airlines Lisbon,[7] Ponta Delgada
Bestfly Cabo Verde[8] Boa Vista, Maio, Sal, São Filipe, São Nicolau, São Vicente
Cabo Verde Airlines Bissau, Lisbon, Paris–Charles de Gaulle,[9] Sal, São Vicente
Luxair Seasonal: Luxembourg (begins 18 December 2023)[10]
Royal Air Maroc Casablanca, Bissau
TAP Air Portugal Lisbon
Transair Dakar–Diass[11]

Statistics
Annual passenger traffic at RAI airport. See Wikidata query.
YearPassengersOperationsCargo (t)
2012[12]497,049
2013[12]505,4978,9781,418
2016[1]522,5848,6411,109
2017[1]662,35611,236959

See also

References
  1. "Boletim Estatístico de Tráfego – Ano 2017" (PDF) (in Portuguese). ASA. January 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  2. "Novo Aeroporto: Primeiro voo intercontinental chega hoje à Praia" [New Airport: First Intercontinental Flight Arrives in Praia]. A Semana (in Portuguese). 23 October 2005. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017.
  3. "Cape Verde Names Airport After Nelson Mandela". All Africa.com. Retrieved 31 December 2013.
  4. "Obras de expansão e modernização do Aeroporto da Praia consomem mais 35 por cento dos 29 milhões de euros previstos" (in Portuguese). Inforpress. 18 December 2017. Archived from the original on 5 November 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  5. "Air Senegal outlines proposed regional network from late-Sep 2018". routesonline.com. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  6. "Asky Airlines adds Cape Verde service from April 2020".
  7. Liu, Jim. "Azores Airlines adds Lisbon – Praia service from late-Oct 2020". Routesonline. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  8. "Schedules". bestflycaboverde.com.
  9. "CABO VERDE AIRLINES VAI RETOMAR VOOS PARA PARIS".
  10. https://newsavia.com/luxair-aumenta-numero-de-voos-semanais-para-as-ilhas-de-cabo-verde/
  11. Gaye, Alex (19 July 2016). "Vol inaugural Dakar-Praia : Transair relève le défi". au-senegal.com.
  12. "Statistics in Airports" (PDF) (in Portuguese). ASA. 1 October 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2014.

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