Upington Airport

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Upington Airport
IATA: UTN - ICAO: FAUP
Summary
Airport type		Public
Operator		Airports Company South Africa
Serves		Upington, Northern Cape
Elevation AMSL		2,770 ft (844 m)
Coordinates		28°24′04″S, 21°15′35″E
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	ft	m	Surface
17/35	16,076	4,900	Asphalt
01/19	7,998	2,438	Asphalt
08/26	6,000	1,829	Asphalt

Upington Airport (IATA: UTN, ICAO: FAUP) is an airport located in Upington, Northern Cape, South Africa.

Lufthansa, Cargolux, South African Airways, and Warbird Cargo fly cargo flights to Upington.

The South African Air Force and South African Airways uses this airport to train pilots for the Boeing 747 and Boeing 707, as well as to handle the Presidential Jet.

From 1976 to 1996, South African Airways used the airport as a refuelling stop for its Boeing 747 flights to Europe. Because South Africa had lost its landing rights on most of the continent because of apartheid, SAA planes were forced to fly from Johannesburg to Upington, take on fuel, and fly over the Atlantic to Europe, avoiding unfriendly airspace. In order to support the takeoff distance of a 747 fully loaded with fuel and passengers, one of the world's longest commercial runways was built here.