| Lae Nadzab Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| IATA: LAE – ICAO: AYNZ
LAE
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| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Operator | Papua New Guinea Office of Civil Aviation | ||
| Location | Lae / Nadzab, Papua New Guinea |
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| Elevation AMSL | 239 ft / 73 m | ||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 09/27 | 8,004 | 2,440 | Asphalt |
| Source: DAFIF[1][2] | |||
Lae Nadzab Airport (IATA: LAE, ICAO: AYNZ) is a regional airport located in Lae, Papua New Guinea. It is served by regional aircraft with domestic flight.
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| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air Niugini | Hoskins, Madang, Manus Island, Mount Hagen, Port Moresby |
| Airlines PNG | Mount Hagen, Port Moresby |
| North Coast Aviation | Bulolo, Finschhafen, Kabwum, Lablab, Omora, Satwag Wau, Yalumet |
Nadzab Airfield was built by the United States Army during World War II and was developed into a massive airbase complex. It was home to many United States Army Air Forces and Royal Australian Air Force units during the war when it was a forward base of operations against Japanese positions, and was vital afterwards as a staging area.
Two parallel runways were built, running roughly east to west. Number 1 Strip was located to the north. Parallel and to the south was Number 2 Strip, closest to the Markham River. Towards the end of the war, the 21st Air Depot Unit at Nadzab began to manage a storage and reclamation area for excess Allied aircraft and salvage area for repairs. The CRTC (Combat Replacement Training Center) flew out of the base into 1945 until it was turned over to the New Guinea government.
The airfield was underutilized after the war until the mid-to-late 1970s. Until that time, live ammunition could still be found at the airfield. Today, the former 'East Base' or No. 1 & No. 2 runways are still in use by Air Niugini and for civil aviation, mainly servicing Lae which is 45 km away. Nearly every road in the area was built by American forces, and one can still see World War II era taxiways in the overgrown areas outside the modern landing area.[3][4][5]
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This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
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