Marrakesh Menara Airport

Marrakesh Menara Airport (Berber languages: ⴰⵣⴰⴳⵯⵣ ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ ⵎⵉⵏⴰⵕⴰ, Arabic: مطار مراكش المنارة, IATA: RAK, ICAO: GMMX) is an international airport serving Marrakesh,^[2] the capital city of the Marrakesh-Safi region in Morocco. It is an international facility that receives several European flights as well as flights from Casablanca, some of the Arab world nations and from 2024, flights from North America. The airport served over 6.3 million passengers in 2019.^[3]

Marrakesh Menara Airport مطار مراكش المنارة (Arabic) ⴰⵣⴰⴳⵯⵣ ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ ⵎⵉⵏⴰⵕⴰ (Berber languages)
IATA: RAK ICAO: GMMX
Summary
Airport type	Public / Military
Owner	Royal Moroccan Air Force
Operator	ONDA
Serves	Marrakesh-Safi
Location	Marrakesh, Morocco
Focus city for	easyJet Royal Air Maroc Transavia France
Operating base for	Ryanair TUI fly Belgium
Elevation AMSL	1,545 ft / 471 m
Coordinates	31°36′25″N 008°02′11″W / 31.60694°N 8.03639°W / 31.60694; -8.03639
Map
RAK Location of airport in Morocco
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 10/28 3,100 10,170 Asphalt
Statistics
Aircraft movements (2022) ~36,750 Passengers (2022) 4,903,681 Passenger change 19-22 23.37%
Source: ONDA^[1]

History

During World War II, the airport was used by the United States Army Air Forces Air Transport Command as a hub for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel. It functioned as a stopover en route to Casablanca Airfield or to Agadir Airport on the North African Cairo-Dakar transport route for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel.^{[citation needed]}

Facilities

 

Check-in hall

 

Apron view

Terminal

Menara Airport has two passenger terminals housed in one large building. A third terminal has been built. The existing T1/T2 offer a space of 42,000 m² and have a designed capacity of 9 million passengers/year. The separate freight-terminal has 340m² covered space^[4] The air terminals (1 and 2) are 22,000 m² (236,806 sq ft) and designed to handle 2,500,000 passengers per year. Menara is one of the six airports in Morocco where ONDA offers its special VIP service Salon Convives de Marque.^[5]

Runway and apron

Aircraft parking space of 125,000 square metres (1,345,489 sq ft) supports up to fourteen Boeing 737s and four Boeing 747s. The cargo terminal is 340 m² (3,660 sq ft) of covered space.^[3] The paved runway is laid out in the direction 10/28 is 3,100 by 45 metres (10,171 ft × 148 ft). It can receive all modern jetliners up to the Boeing 747 in size. The airport is equipped with an ILS Cat II landing system and offers the following radio navigation aids: VOR – DME – NDB.^[3]

Airlines and destinations

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

Airlines	Destinations
Aegean Airlines	Athens
Air Arabia	Fès^[6], Dakhla^[7]
airBaltic	Seasonal: Riga^[8]
Air Europa	Madrid^[9]
Air France	Paris–Charles de Gaulle^[10] Seasonal: Nice^[11]
Air Transat	Montréal–Trudeau (begins 12 June 2024)^[12]
Alexandria Airlines	Seasonal charter: Sharm El Sheikh^[13]
Arkia	Tel Aviv^[14]
Austrian Airlines	Seasonal: Vienna^[15]
Binter Canarias	Gran Canaria Seasonal: Funchal,^[16] Tenerife–North^[17]
British Airways	London–Gatwick, London–Heathrow^[18]
Discover Airlines	Frankfurt, Munich^[19]
easyJet	Basel/Mulhouse, Bordeaux, Bristol,^[20] Geneva, Lisbon,^[21] London–Gatwick, London–Luton, Lyon, Manchester, Milan–Malpensa, Nantes, Naples (begins 16 December 2023),^[22] Nice, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Porto,^[23] Toulouse Seasonal: Amsterdam
Edelweiss Air	Seasonal: Zurich^a
El Al	Tel Aviv^[24]
European Air Charter	Seasonal charter: Sofia^[25]
Eurowings	Seasonal: Düsseldorf
Iberia	Madrid
Jet2.com	Birmingham, London–Stansted, Manchester (all begin 4 October 2024)^[26] Seasonal: Glasgow (begins 4 November 2024)^[27]
Lufthansa	Munich^[28]
Luxair	Seasonal: Luxembourg^[29]
Norwegian Air Shuttle	Copenhagen Seasonal: Oslo, Stockholm–Arlanda^[30]
Qatar Airways	Doha^[31]
Royal Air Maroc	Barcelona, Bordeaux, Brussels,^[32] Casablanca, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Paris–Charles de Gaulle,^[33] Paris–Orly, Toulouse Seasonal: Medina
Royal Air Maroc Express	Casablanca, Ouarzazate
Ryanair	Alicante, Barcelona, Beauvais, Bergamo, Berlin, Bordeaux, Brussels, Châlons-Vatry, Charleroi, Cologne/Bonn, Dole, Dublin,^[34] Edinburgh,^[35] Eindhoven, Girona,^[36] Gran Canaria,^[37] Hahn, Lisbon, London–Stansted, Madrid, Manchester,^[38] Marseille, Naples, Nimes, Perpignan,^[39] Pisa, Porto,^[40] Rome–Ciampino, Santander,^[39] Seville, Stockholm–Arlanda,^[41] Toulouse,^[42] Tours, Treviso, Turin, Valencia, Weeze, Zaragoza Seasonal: Limoges, Palma de Mallorca^[43]
Saudia	Seasonal: Jeddah^[44]
Swiss International Air Lines	Geneva
TAP Air Portugal	Lisbon
Transavia	Amsterdam, Brest,^[45] Brussels (begins 28 June 2024),^[46] Eindhoven, Lyon, Montpellier, Nantes, Paris–Orly, Rennes^[47] Seasonal: Boa Vista, Cap Skirring, Dakar–Diass,^[48] Marseille,^[49] Sal, Praia, ^[50] São Vicente,^[51]
TUI Airways^[52]	Birmingham, London–Gatwick, Manchester Seasonal: Bristol
TUI fly Belgium^[53]	Bologna, Brussels, Lille, Paris–Orly, Rotterdam^[54]
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul
Volotea	Nantes,^[55] Strasbourg^[56] Seasonal: Bilbao,^[57] Lille,^[58] Lyon (begins 13 April 2024)^[59]
Vueling	Barcelona Seasonal: Bilbao,^[60] Paris–Orly^[60]
Wizz Air	London–Gatwick,^[61] Milan–Malpensa, Warsaw–Chopin Seasonal: Rome–Fiumicino^[62]

Notes

^a On selected days, this flight operates from Marrakesh to Zurich via Agadir. However, this carrier does not have rights to transport passengers solely between Marrakesh and Agadir.
^b Flights from Boa Vista and Sal to Marrakech operate as round trips that start and end at Paris Orly Airport.
^c Flights from Dakar to Marrakech operate as round trips that start and end at Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport.

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic at RAK airport. See Wikidata query.

Item	2018	2017	2016	2014^[63]	2007^[64]	2006	2005	2004	2003	2002
Aircraft movements^[65]					29,246	24,613	20,689	16,112	13,843	13,078
Passengers^[66]^[67]	5,300,000	4,359,865	3,894,227	4,034,410	3,050,916	2,648,742	2,195,899	1,667,267	1,368,281	1,349,363
Freight (tons)^[68]					1555.07	1307.99	2000.40	2286.86	2092.99	2197.70

Ground transport

The Spanish bus company Alsa operates regular Route 19 buses every day between Marrakesh Menara airport and both the medina (the stop is in a row of bus stops opposite the Koutoubia Mosque) and the new town.^{[citation needed]}

References

  This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

1. "Aéroports du Maroc : Trafic aérien de l'année 2022". onda.ma.
2. ^[usurped] from DAFIF (effective October 2006)
3. "Marrakech". ONDA. Retrieved 13 March 2010.
4. ONDA Website: Presentation RAK, visited 10 June 2012
5. ONDA website on the VIP service, visited 17 March 2012
6. "Air Arabia Maroc expands Fez routes from June 2017".
7. (Report) https://fr.le360.ma/economie/aerien-air-arabia-inaugure-sa-nouvelle-ligne-marrakech-dakhla_EI54HE3OW5H7TFSSU7KUY6Y2EA/. {{cite report}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
8. "AirBaltic Announces New Winter Destination – Marrakesh". 14 June 2022.
9. "Air Europa plans Marrakech launch in Dec 2017".
10. "Air France lance Marrakech et Porto au départ de Paris CDG".
11. "Air France Adds Seasonal Nice – Marrakech Route in 3Q23". 15 February 2023.
12. "Air Transat Schedules Marrakech Launch in June 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
13. "ALEXANDRIA AIRLINES ADDS SHARM EL SHEIKH CHARTER ROUTES IN 1Q23". aeroroutes.com. 20 February 2023.
14. "El al Launches Two Routes from Israel to Morocco".
15. "Austrian Airlines gibt Ausblick auf Winterflugplan 2022/2023 | airportzentrale.de".
16. "Binter Expands Funchal/Madeira Network In 3Q22". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
17. . noticias.terra.es. Archived from the original on 12 August 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
18. "British Airways launches Marrakech route from Heathrow".
19. Umstellung des touristischen Kurz- und Mittelstreckenangebots auf Eurowings Discover (PDF). Lufthansa Experts (Report) (in German). Cologne: Lufthansa Group. 6 September 2021.^{[bare URL PDF]}
20. "News for Airlines, Airports and the Aviation Industry | CAPA".
21. "EasyJet lança 13 novas rotas a partir de Lisboa". 27 July 2022.
22. https://www.labussolanews.it/2023/08/22/aeroporto-napoli-easyjwt-annuncia-nuovo-volo-verso-marrakech/
23. https://www.aeroroutes.com/eng/230710-u2nw23
24. "מרוקו, הנה אנחנו באים: היום טיסות ישירות ראשונות מנתב"ג - וואלה! תיירות" (in Hebrew). 25 July 2021.
25. "Почивки Мароко, Мароко - Abax.bg".
26. https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/air/jet2-introduces-morocco-flights-and-holidays
27. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/23862356.scotland-flights-new-jet2-morocco-marrakesh-agadir-routes/
28. "LUFTHANSA RESUMES MUNICH – MARRAKECH SERVICE IN NW23".
29. "Twice a week: Luxair to offer flights to Marrakesh from February".
30. "Norwegian Resumes 4 Seasonal Routes from Stockholm in NW22".
31. "Doha to Casablanca and Marrakesh Flights on Qatar Airways". 17 April 2023.
32. "Brussels Airport presents Summer 2022 schedule; 6 new destinations and 4 new airlines". 17 March 2022.
33. "Royal Air Maroc Adds Marrakech – Paris CDG Service in NW22".
34. "Ryanair Launches Dublin S18 Schedule – 5 New Routes To Marrakech, Munich, Naples, Paphos & Stuttgart". Ryanair DAC. 29 August 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
35. Davies, Phil (19 October 2021). "Ryanair to serve Marrakech from Edinburgh by Christmas". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
36. https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en
37. "Rayanir website". Ryanair.com.^{[not specific enough to verify]}
38. "Ryanair's Eddie Wilson: " You've got to give people confidence" | CAPA". Centreforaviation.com. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
39. "Ryanair W17 new routes as of 05MAR17".
40. "Ryanair expands Marrakech network in W18".
41. https://aviation.direct/winter-2023-24-ryanair-legt-wieder-marokko-fluege-ab-wien-auf
42. "Ryanair will connect Toulouse to Marrakech". air-journal.fr. 29 November 2019.
43. "Ryanair route map | Our European destinations".
44. "Saudia-new-destinations".
45. https://www.air-journal.fr/2023-11-07-transavia-relie-brest-et-marrakech-cet-hiver-5252219.html
46. https://www.aeroroutes.com/eng/230925-hvns24
47. "Transavia France to Launch Air Routes Connecting Marrakech With Two French Airports". Morocco World News. 16 June 2023.
48. "TRANSAVIA FRANCE NW23 WEST AFRICA NETWORK EXPANSION". https://www.aeroroutes.com. 1 May 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
49. "Cet hiver, Transavia ouvre 3 nouvelles lignes internationales au départ de Marseille". Maritima.Info. 23 August 2022.
50. "TRANSAVIA FRANCE NW23 WEST AFRICA NETWORK EXPANSION". https://www.aeroroutes.com. 1 May 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
51. "TRANSAVIA FRANCE NW23 WEST AFRICA NETWORK EXPANSION". https://www.aeroroutes.com. 1 May 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
52. "Flight Timetable". tui.co.uk.
53. "- TUI fly was Jetairfly.com". www.tuifly.be.
54. "Meer TUI-vluchten vanuit Rotterdam". 21 April 2022.
55. "Volotea opens four new routes from Nantes and adds an eighth based aircraft" (in French).
56. "Morocco World News | Morocco news, Morocco Latest News".
57. https://www.preferente.com/noticias-de-transportes/noticias-de-aerolineas/volotea-lanza-una-nueva-ruta-entre-bilbao-y-marruecos-322041.html
58. "Volotea volará desde Tenerife, Fuerteventura y Lanzarote a Lille". 21 July 2022.
59. https://actu.fr/auvergne-rhone-alpes/lyon_69123/aeroport-de-lyon-volotea-ouvre-de-nouvelles-lignes-marrakech-des-29-euros_60162553.html
60. "Vueling adds new Marrakesh routes in NS23". Aeroroutes. 1 November 2022.
61. "Wizz Air to launch Sharm el Sheikh this winter".
62. Tempo di lettura 2 minuti (13 May 2021). "Wizz Air apre base a Roma Fiumicino - WEtravel". Wetravel.biz. Retrieved 14 March 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
63. Source 2008 details: ONDA site^{[permanent dead link]}
64. Source 2007 details: ONDA site^{[permanent dead link]}
65. Details up to 2006 from: Overview movements aircraft MA 22 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, PDF document
66. 2018 details from: Overview movements aircraft MA, PDF document
67. Details up to 2006 from: Overview passengers MA 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, PDF document
68. Details up to 2006 from: Overview freight MA 22 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, PDF document

External links

  Media related to Marrakech-Menara Airport at Wikimedia Commons

• Marrakech page at ONDA website
• Aeronautical chart and airport information for GMMX at SkyVector
• Current weather for GMMX at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for RAK at Aviation Safety Network
• RAK Marrakech Airport Information guide for RAK Marrakech Airport