Macau International Airport

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Macau International Airport (IATA: MFM, ICAO: VMMC) (Chinese: 澳門國際機場; Portuguese: Aeroporto Internacional de Macau) is an international airport in the special administrative region of Macau, situated at the eastern end of Taipa island and neighbouring waters which opened for commercial operations on 9 November 1995, during Portuguese administration of the region.

Macau International Airport Aeroporto Internacional de Macau 澳門國際機場 Oumùhn Gwokjai Gēichèuhng
IATA: MFM ICAO: VMMC
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Government of Macau
Operator	Sociedade do Aeroporto Internacional de Macau S.A.R.L.
Serves	Pearl River Delta
Location	Taipa, Macau
Opened	9 November 1995; 28 years ago (1995-11-09)
Hub for	Air Macau
Elevation AMSL	6 m / 20 ft
Coordinates	22°08′58″N 113°35′29″E / 22.14944°N 113.59139°E / 22.14944; 113.59139
Website	www.macau-airport.com/en
Map
MFM Location in Macau
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 16/34 3,360 11,024 Asphalt concrete
Statistics (2022)
Passengers 599,185^[1] Movements 13,642^[1] Cargo 51,400,662^[2]
Sources: CAM – Macau International Airport Co. Ltd. website^[1]^[2]

Macau International Airport
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	澳門國際機場
Simplified Chinese	澳门国际机场
Cantonese Yale	Oumùhn Gwokjai Gēichèuhng
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Àomén Guójì Jīchǎng Wade–Giles Ao^4men^2 Kuo^2chi^4 Chi^1ch'ang^3 Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Oumùhn Gwokjai Gēichèuhng Jyutping ou^3mun^4*2 gwok^3zai^3 gei^1coeng^4
Portuguese name
Portuguese	Aeroporto Internacional de Macau

Since then the airport has been a common transfer point for people traveling between the Mainland and Taiwan, as well as a passenger hub for destinations in mainland China and Southeast Asia. During 2006, the airport handled 5 million passengers and 220,000 tonnes of cargo.^[3] In 2017 the number of passengers had increased to 7,165,803,^[4] which is more than the 6 million passengers per year the terminal was originally designed for.^[5]

History

The Macau airport was constructed on reclaimed land adjacent to the islands of Taipa and Coloane.^[6] It cost US$1 billion to build. Commercial air service began on 9 November 1995. The first departure was an Air Macau flight to Beijing, and the first arrival was a Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur.^[7] The official inauguration ceremony took place on 8 December 1995, and Portuguese President Mário Soares presided over it.^[6]

In April 1996, TAP Air Portugal started service to Lisbon using Airbus A340s.^[8][9] It cooperated with Sabena on the route; the flight stopped in Brussels, and TAP allocated a certain number of seats to the airline on the segment between Brussels and Macau. TAP encountered difficulties in running the flights. The crew had to spend long layovers in Macau because the service only operated twice a week. Additionally, TAP and Air Macau, in which the former held a stake, were unable to coordinate their schedules, making connections between the Lisbon flight and Air Macau's network inconvenient.^[9] In April 1997, TAP moved the stopover to Bangkok in hopes of attracting more passengers.^[10][11] Nevertheless, it was losing money on the route. The company's chairman stated in November 1997 that he wanted to end the link but that he faced opposition from the Portuguese government, which owned the airline.^[12] TAP stopped serving Macau the following year.^[13]

Facilities

Terminal

The airport's designed capacity is 6,000,000 passengers per year, with processing capacity of up to 2,000 passengers per hour.^{[citation needed]} The airport does not have a night curfew. There are 24 parking spaces for aircraft in the apron, with five jetways. There are 10 gates. As in Hong Kong, Macau has its own immigration policies and is a separate customs territory from mainland China. All travellers, including those to mainland China and Hong Kong, need to go through the immigration and customs inspections of international flights.

Runway and aprons

The airport's runway was built on a strip of reclaimed land in the sea, adjacent to Taipa Island, where the main terminal and air traffic control facilities are located, unlike in Hong Kong, where Chek Lap Kok has them all on a reclaimed island. The runway is connected to the apron by two causeways. Runway 34 is ILS CAT II equipped. Navigational and radio aids are located at either end of the runway. Despite its small area, the airport is capable of handling Boeing 747s and Antonov 124s, which forms a vital freight link between local manufacturers and overseas markets. Its catering facility can produce up to 10,000 meals per day.

Other tenants

Other tenants of the airport are the Macau Customs Service (Independent department under Secretariat for Security of Macau), the Macau Immigration Department/Services (Public Security Police Force of Macau), the Macau Business Aviation Centre, Servair Macau and Menzies Macau.

Redevelopment

Since 2016, Macau's government has been developing a master plan for the airport's expansion.^[14] To be done in three phases, the most visible sections of it broke ground in 2020.^[15]

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
AirAsia	Kuala Lumpur–International
Air Busan	Busan
Air China	Wuhan
Air Macau	Bangkok–Don Mueang, Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi, Beijing–Capital, Beijing–Daxing, Changzhou, Chengdu–Tianfu, Chongqing, Da Nang, Fuzhou, Guiyang, Hangzhou, Hanoi, Jakarta–Soekarno-Hatta,^[16] Kaohsiung, Kuala Lumpur–International (resumes 10 January 2024),^[17] Nanjing, Nanning, Nantong, Ningbo, Osaka–Kansai, Qingdao, Seoul–Incheon, Shanghai–Hongqiao, Shanghai–Pudong, Singapore, Taipei–Taoyuan, Taiyuan, Tianjin, Tokyo–Narita, Wenzhou, Xiamen
Bamboo Airways	Charter: Nha Trang
Cambodia Airways	Phnom Penh
Cebu Pacific	Clark, Manila
China Eastern Airlines	Beijing–Daxing, Hefei,^[18] Nanjing, Shanghai–Hongqiao, Shanghai–Pudong, Wuxi, Xi'an^[19]
EVA Air	Kaohsiung, Taipei–Taoyuan
Hainan Airlines	Haikou
Jeju Air	Jeju, Seoul–Incheon^[20]
Jin Air	Seoul–Incheon
Juneyao Air	Shanghai–Pudong
Philippine Airlines	Manila
Philippines AirAsia	Manila
Royal Air Philippines	Charter: Lal-lo
Scoot	Singapore
Shanghai Airlines	Shanghai–Hongqiao, Shanghai–Pudong
Shenzhen Airlines	Nanjing, Wuxi
Spring Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong
Starlux Airlines	Taichung (begins 31 March 2024),^[21] Taipei–Taoyuan
Thai AirAsia	Bangkok–Don Mueang
Thai Lion Air	Bangkok–Don Mueang^[22]
Thai VietJet Air	Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi
Tigerair Taiwan	Kaohsiung, Taichung, Taipei–Taoyuan
VietJet Air	Charter: Da Nang
Vietnam Airlines	Hanoi
XiamenAir	Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Quanzhou, Xiamen

Statistics

Annual traffic

Year	Passengers^[23]^[24]^[1]	Airfreight (kg)^[25]^[26]^[2]	Aircraft operations^[1]
2012	4,491,065	27,794,488	41,997
2013	5,027,059	26,464,881	48,950
2014	5,481,441	28,767,407	52,559
2015	5,831,459	30,058,277	55,720
2016	6,628,555	32,891,452	56,932
2017	7,165,803	37,499,000	58,520
2018	8,261,412	41,508,955	65,777
2019	9,611,427	42,219,799	77,581
2020	1,173,231	33,346,677	16,962
2021	1,147,015	48,595,307	15,791
2022	599,185	51,400,662	13,642

Ground transportation

The airport is connected by public transit bus routes, light rail, taxis, private cars, and regional coach services.

Air–sea link

For passengers transferring to China or Hong Kong, a "two customs, one checkpoint" service is provided. Passengers can use a bus shuttle directly from the airport to the New Macau Ferry Terminal or the Taipa Ferry Terminal without passing Macau immigration.

Bus

Towards Macau Peninsula, Taipa, Cotai and Coloane

• Transmac routes:
  • 26 – Bacia Norte do Patane ↔ Mercado Municipal de Coloane
  • 51A – The Praia ↔ Av. Vale das Borboletas
  • AP1 – Portas do Cerco ↺ Aeroporto de Macau
  • AP1X – Praça das Portas do Cerco ↺ Aeroporto de Macau (06:00–10:00, 15:00–20:00)
  • MT4 – Parque M. Dr. Sun Yat Sen ↔ Terminal Marítimo de Passageiros da Taipa
• T.C.M. routes:
  • N2 – Bacia Norte do Patane ↔ Terminal Marítimo de Passageiros da Taipa (00:00–06:00)
  • 36 – Rotunda Leonel Sousa ↺ Aeroporto de Macau
  • MT1 – Praceta 24 de Junho ↺ Aeroporto de Macau

Cross-border coaches

Cross-border coaches connect Macau International Airport with mainland locations like Huadao, Guangzhou, Panyu, Dongguan, Gongbei Port of Entry and Hengqin Border. The "two customs, one checkpoint" service is also available at the Hengqin Border.

Light rail

The airport is served by the Airport Station of the Macau Light Rail Transit's Taipa Line at Avenida Wai Long.^[27]

See also

• Civil Aviation Authority of Macau SAR

References

1. "Traffic Statistics – Passengers". CAM – Macau International Airport Co. Ltd. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
2. "Traffic Statistics – Cargo". CAM – Macau International Airport Co. Ltd. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
3. Macao 2007 Yearbook (PDF). Government Information Bureau of the Macau SAR. 2007. ISBN 978-99937-56-09-5.
4. "Traffic Statistics – Passengers". Macau International Airport Co. Ltd. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
5. "MIA: Airport History". Airport Information Management Solutions Ltd. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
6. Menon, Vijayan (9 December 1995). "Macau Airport built on reclaimed land opens". New Straits Times. ProQuest 269071286.
7. Ionides, Nicholas (10 November 1995). "Absence of facilities at Macau airport 'normal'". South China Morning Post. ProQuest 265265309.
8. "Route developments". World Airline News. 5 February 1996. ProQuest 195017579.
9. Whitaker, Richard (31 July 1996). "TAP trickles into Macau". Airline Business. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
10. "Macau's airport gamble". South China Morning Post. 19 June 1997. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
11. Tansubhapol, Bhanravee (9 April 1997). "Aviation - Direct Flight to Portugal Makes Debut". Bangkok Post.
12. "Turn off the TAP". Airline Business. 30 November 1997. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
13. Lo, Joseph (13 September 2002). "Buyer in sight for Air Macau stake". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
14. "Macau International Airport Master Plan". Civil Aviation Authority of Macao. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
15. "Macau Airport Begins Construction". International Airport Review. 16 March 2020.
16. "A new date has been set for Air Macau's first flight to Jakarta". The Macao News. 21 November 2023.
17. "Air Macau Resumes Kuala Lumpur Service From Jan 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
18. "换季时间到啦！快来拿走这份超全冬航季航班计划表". Retrieved 5 December 2023.
19. "China Eastern Resumes Xi'An – Hong Kong / Macau Service in NW23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
20. "제주항공, 11월 10일부터 인천∼마카오 매일 재운항". 연합뉴스. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
21. "Starlux Adds Taipei – Hakodate and Taichung – Macau in February and March 2024". KN Aviation. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
22. "Thai Lion Air Adds Macau Service From mid-Oct 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
23. . Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
24. . www.camacau.com. Archived from the original on 9 May 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
25. . Archived from the original on 20 September 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
26. . www.camacau.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
27. "Airport Station". Macao Light Rapid Transit Corporation, Limited. Retrieved 15 December 2022.

External links

  Media related to Macau International Airport at Wikimedia Commons

• Macau International Airport
• "Macao AIP". Civil Aviation Authority of Macao SAR.
• Current weather for VMMC at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for MFM at Aviation Safety Network