| Goma Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| IATA: GOM – ICAO: FZNA
Goma
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| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Operator | Government | ||
| Serves | Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 5,089 ft / 1,551 m | ||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| m | ft | ||
| 18/36 | 1,995 | 6,545 | Asphalt |
| Source: DAFIF[1][2] | |||
Goma International Airport (IATA: GOM, ICAO: FZNA) is an airport serving Goma, a city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Contents |
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Compagnie Africaine d'Aviation | Entebbe, Kinshasa, Kisangani |
| Stellar Airways | Kinshasa-N'djili |
Initially built with a paved 3 km runway and a large terminal and apron, the airport has not recovered from the 2002 eruption of the volcano Nyiragongo, 14 km to the north. The airport couldn't handle any wide-bodied aircraft except for freight operations run by relief agencies and the United Nations. A stream of fluid lava 200 m by 1000 m wide flowed onto the runway and through the city center as far as the lake shore, covering over the northern 1 km of the runway and isolating the terminal and apron which were only connected by taxiway to the northern end. The lava can easily be seen in satellite photographs,[3] and aircraft can be seen using the 2 km southern section of the runway which is clear of lava. A temporary apron has been made at the side of the operational part of the runway. A Douglas DC-8 was left stranded on the terminal apron, which is now used by military and relief helicopters.
On 15 April 2008, a Hewa Bora Airways DC-9 overshot the runway during an aborted takeoff and crashed into the marketplace immediately to the south of the airport, killing over 40 people.
On 19 November 2009, Compagnie Africaine d'Aviation Flight 3711, operated by McDonnell Douglas MD-82 9Q-CAB overran the runway on landing, suffering substantial damage.[4] The overrun area was contaminated by solidified lava.[5]