Yasser Arafat International Airport
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| Yasser Arafat International Airport مطار ياسر عرفات الدولي |
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| IATA: GZA - ICAO: LVGZ | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Operator | Yaser Arafat International Airport | ||
| Serves | Gaza Strip | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 320 ft (98 m) | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 01/19 | 10,091 | 3,076 | Asphalt |
Yasser Arafat International Airport (Arabic: مطار ياسر عرفات الدولي; transliterated: Matar Yasir 'Arafat ad-Dowaly) (IATA: GZA, ICAO: LVGZ), formerly Gaza International Airport and Dahaniya International Airport, is located in the Gaza Strip, in Rafah close to the Egyptian border.
It is owned and operated by the Palestinian Authority, and serves as the home airport for Palestinian Airlines. The airport was able to handle 700,000 passengers per year and operated 24 hours and 364 days a year (closed on Yom Kippur). It was the only airport in the Palestinian territories. The airport opened in 1998, but it closed in 2001 after being severely damaged by Israeli military forces. The IDF destroyed the radar station and runways in December 2001. From 2001 to 2006, airport staff still manned the ticket counters and baggage areas[1], though no aircraft flew into or out of the airport during that period. During the Lebanon war in summer 2006, the IDF bombed the main terminal building. The airport is currently being stripped for materials by looters. The closest airport in the area is El Arish International Airport in Egypt.
The airport was built with funding from Japan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and Germany and designed by Moroccan architects (modelled after Casablanca airport) and engineers funded by Morocco's King Hassan II. The total cost was $86 million. After a year of construction, it opened on 24 November 1998; attendees at the opening ceremony included Yasser Arafat and former US President Bill Clinton. At the time, the opening of the airport was described as evidence of progress toward Palestinian statehood.[1]
The airport is twinned with Mohammed V International Airport, in Casablanca, Morocco.
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[edit] Runways
The airport has one runway of 3080 m x 60 m, but it is no longer operational due to extensive damage to the north and middle sections of the runway. Some of the taxiways are damaged, but the apron did not sustain heavy damage.
[edit] Buildings and Terminal
The main terminal building is a two storey 4,000 square metre Arab Islamic designed building and decorated with Moroccan tile, glass windows framed by arches and has state-of-the-art equipment. A control tower faces the runway and apron.
The airport is staffed by a total of 400 personnel.
There are no ramps for passengers to disembark directly to the terminal. Stairs are brought out to the planes when they are parked on the apron.
Facilities within the terminal building:
- VIP Lounge
- Baggage Area
- Customs and Immigration
- 2 Restaurants
- Medical Facilities
- First Aid Clinic
- Bank
- Post office
- Tourist Office
- Security Office
There are 19 other buildings at the airport including:
- Fuel Stations - Palestinian Petroleum Corporation
- Aircraft Hangars
- ATS Communication Tower - destroyed
- Passenger Services
- Cargo Terminals
- Airline Operations (Ground Services)
- Fire and Rescue
- Parking Lot
- Maintenance Workshop
- 28 Metres ATC watchtower
[edit] Ground transportation
Transportation to and from the airport is linked by buses and taxis to the rest of the Gaza Strip.
[edit] Airlines
A list of airlines once operating at the airport:
[edit] Air Traffic Control
Locally Air Traffic Control at YAIA was maintained by the Palestinian Authority Civil Aviation Authority, but traffic to and from is also under the jurisdiction of the Israel South Control.
The radar station and control tower were destroyed by Israel Defense Forces aircraft in 2001 after the start of the Al-Aqsa intifada, and bulldozers cut the runway apart in January 2002. [2] [3] The disabling of the airport was motivated by Israeli concerns that they could not control what the Palestinian Authority transported in or out of the Gaza Strip, and to punish Arafat's government for their support of terrorism.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ Palestinians cheer airport as first step to statehood, Associated Press, November 25, 1998.
- ^ Grounded in Gaza, but hoping to fly again, MSNBC, May 19 2005, Retrieved on July 2nd 2006
- ^ Years of delays at Gaza airport, BBC, April 15 2005, Retrieved on July 2nd 2006
- ^ Mitch Potter, Gaza yearns to fly again, The Toronto Star, January 23, 2005.
[edit] External links
