Asmara International Airport (IATA: ASM, ICAO: HHAS) is the international airport of Asmara, the capital of Eritrea. It is the country's largest airport and the only one receiving regularly scheduled services as of 2017.
The airport was constructed by the Italian colonial authorities in 1922, the first such facility to be opened in Italian Eritrea with the name "Aeroporto di Gura". It served as the main military airport in the territory. In the mid-1930s, the airport (enlarged and now called Aeroporto Civile Umberto Maddalena di Asmara[1]) began offering civilian and commercial flights.
On 7 July 1935, an agreement was signed with British "Imperial Airways" to connect Asmara to Khartoum. A regular Kassala-Khartoum-Asmara-Massawa 770 km commercial route was subsequently started with a Caproni 133 of the Italian Ala Littoria.[2]
Additionally, a regular Asmara-Assab- Mogadishu commercial route was started in summer 1935, with an Ala Littoria's Caproni Ca.133 providing 13-hour flights from the Mogadishu airport to Italian Eritrea. The aircraft had a maximal capacity of 18 passengers, which at the time was a record.
In 1936, Ala Littoria launched an intercontinental connection -called "Linea dell'Impero"- between Mogadishu-Asmara-Khartoum-Tripoli and Rome. The voyage lasted four days and was one of the first long range flights in the world.
During World War II, the airport was nearly destroyed by the British. It was later renovated in the 1950s, and reopened to offer flights to Addis Ababa and other cities in Ethiopia. With Eritrea's independence in the 1990s, the airport became an international portal to the new nation.
During the Eritrean-Ethiopian War, the airport was bombed two times by Ethiopia in 1998[3] and 2000.[4] In April 2003, after improvements to the airport's runways, Eritrean Airlines started regular services between Asmara and Frankfurt, Milan, Nairobi and Rome. In 2004, it served 136,526 passengers (+11.8% vs. 2003). In 2018, after renewed relations with Ethiopia, the airport started accepting flights from Addis Ababa for the first time since the war.
Facilities
The airport has capacity restrictions due to its small terminal, short runway and high 1.5-mile (2300m.) altitude. Consequently, some large jet aircraft (like an A380, MD-11 or 747) cannot fly to the airport.[citation needed] Unsuitable aircraft would instead need to use the Massawa International Airport on the Eritrean coast. Lufthansa, however, operated Airbus A340 aircraft on a FRA-JED-ASM service as recently as 2012.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
^Belula Tecle-Misghina (2015). Asmara – an urban history: Rivista L'architettura delle città – UNESCO Chair Series n. 1. Edizioni Nuova Cultura. p. 9. ISBN978-88-6812-354-3.
^Flavio Riccitelli (A.I.D.A.). "ALA LITTORIA S.A. (1934–1941)". Il Postalista. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
^"Ethiopia and Eritrea step up bombing raids". The Irish Times. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
^"BBC News | AFRICA | Ethiopia hits Asmara airport". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
^. Archived from the original on 10 April 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
^"flydubai announces flights to Eritrea's capital Asmara". Retrieved 18 October 2018.
^"Istanbul New Airport Transition Delayed Until April 5, 2019 (At The Earliest)". 9 April 2019.
External links
Media related to Asmara International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
asmara, international, airport, iata, icao, hhas, international, airport, asmara, capital, eritrea, country, largest, airport, only, receiving, regularly, scheduled, services, 2017, iata, asmicao, hhassummaryairport, typemilitary, publicservesasmara, eritreael. Asmara International Airport IATA ASM ICAO HHAS is the international airport of Asmara the capital of Eritrea It is the country s largest airport and the only one receiving regularly scheduled services as of 2017 Asmara International AirportIATA ASMICAO HHASSummaryAirport typeMilitary PublicServesAsmara EritreaElevation AMSL7 661 ft 2 335 mCoordinates15 17 30 67 N 38 54 38 40 E 15 2918528 N 38 9106667 E 15 2918528 38 9106667 Coordinates 15 17 30 67 N 38 54 38 40 E 15 2918528 N 38 9106667 E 15 2918528 38 9106667MapASMLocation of airport in EritreaRunwaysDirection Length Surfaceft m07 25 9 842 3 000 Asphalt Contents 1 History 2 Facilities 3 Airlines and destinations 4 References 5 External linksHistory EditThe airport was constructed by the Italian colonial authorities in 1922 the first such facility to be opened in Italian Eritrea with the name Aeroporto di Gura It served as the main military airport in the territory In the mid 1930s the airport enlarged and now called Aeroporto Civile Umberto Maddalena di Asmara 1 began offering civilian and commercial flights On 7 July 1935 an agreement was signed with British Imperial Airways to connect Asmara to Khartoum A regular Kassala Khartoum Asmara Massawa 770 km commercial route was subsequently started with a Caproni 133 of the Italian Ala Littoria 2 Additionally a regular Asmara Assab Mogadishu commercial route was started in summer 1935 with an Ala Littoria s Caproni Ca 133 providing 13 hour flights from the Mogadishu airport to Italian Eritrea The aircraft had a maximal capacity of 18 passengers which at the time was a record In 1936 Ala Littoria launched an intercontinental connection called Linea dell Impero between Mogadishu Asmara Khartoum Tripoli and Rome The voyage lasted four days and was one of the first long range flights in the world During World War II the airport was nearly destroyed by the British It was later renovated in the 1950s and reopened to offer flights to Addis Ababa and other cities in Ethiopia With Eritrea s independence in the 1990s the airport became an international portal to the new nation During the Eritrean Ethiopian War the airport was bombed two times by Ethiopia in 1998 3 and 2000 4 In April 2003 after improvements to the airport s runways Eritrean Airlines started regular services between Asmara and Frankfurt Milan Nairobi and Rome In 2004 it served 136 526 passengers 11 8 vs 2003 In 2018 after renewed relations with Ethiopia the airport started accepting flights from Addis Ababa for the first time since the war Facilities EditThe airport has capacity restrictions due to its small terminal short runway and high 1 5 mile 2300m altitude Consequently some large jet aircraft like an A380 MD 11 or 747 cannot fly to the airport citation needed Unsuitable aircraft would instead need to use the Massawa International Airport on the Eritrean coast Lufthansa however operated Airbus A340 aircraft on a FRA JED ASM service as recently as 2012 The airport is also an Eritrean Air Force base Airlines and destinations EditAirlinesDestinationsEgyptairCairoEritrean AirlinesAddis Ababa 5 Cairo Jeddah KhartoumEthiopian AirlinesAddis AbabaflydubaiDubai International 6 Sudan AirwaysKhartoumTarco AviationKhartoumTurkish AirlinesIstanbul 7 References Edit This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency Belula Tecle Misghina 2015 Asmara an urban history Rivista L architettura delle citta UNESCO Chair Series n 1 Edizioni Nuova Cultura p 9 ISBN 978 88 6812 354 3 Flavio Riccitelli A I D A ALA LITTORIA S A 1934 1941 Il Postalista Retrieved 7 October 2013 Ethiopia and Eritrea step up bombing raids The Irish Times Retrieved 8 February 2019 BBC News AFRICA Ethiopia hits Asmara airport news bbc co uk Retrieved 8 February 2019 Schedule Eritrean Airlines Gateway to Africa Archived from the original on 10 April 2017 Retrieved 14 September 2021 flydubai announces flights to Eritrea s capital Asmara Retrieved 18 October 2018 Istanbul New Airport Transition Delayed Until April 5 2019 At The Earliest 9 April 2019 External links Edit Media related to Asmara International Airport at Wikimedia Commons Portals Eritrea Aviation World War II Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Asmara International Airport amp oldid 1148365200, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
