V. C. Bird International Airport

V. C. Bird International Airport (IATA: ANU, ICAO: TAPA) is located on the island of Antigua, 8 km (5.0 mi) northeast of St. John's, the capital of Antigua and Barbuda.

History

The airport originally was operated by the United States Army Air Force. It closed in 1949 as Coolidge Air Force Base and upon the closure it became a civil airport. It was known as Coolidge International Airport until 1985, when it was named in honor of Sir Vere Cornwall Bird (1910–1999), the first prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda.

In December 2005, the Antigua and Barbuda Millennium Airport Corporation announced it would invite tenders to construct the first phase of a new passenger terminal designed to serve the airport for 30 years.

Airlines and destinations

Charter

Cargo carriers

Incidents

• On 17 September 1965, Pan Am Flight 292, a Boeing 707-121B en route from Fort de France, Martinique, to St. John's struck Chances Peak on Montserrat, an island to the southwest of Antigua, killing all 30 aboard. The pilot mistakenly believed he was descending into Antigua. As a result, a VHF omnirange (VOR) transmitter was installed at the St. John's airport.

• On May 10, 2004, a LIAT de Havilland Canada DHC-8-311 flight made an emergency landing after one of its wheels fell off shortly after takeoff. The flight operated by the Antigua-based airline had departed from St. Maarten en route to St. Kitts when one of its wheels reportedly fell off. The Dash 8-311 turboprop was diverted to Antigua and was able to land safely on its three remaining wheels, without causing damage to the aircraft. None of the 24 passengers and three crew members were injured. The airline has launched an investigation into the incident.

• On November 12, 2008, a LIAT de Havilland Canada DHC-8-311 circled around V. C. Bird International Airport in Antigua following reports of landing gear malfunction. The de Haviland Dash 8 -311 aircraft should have landed at the Robert Bradshaw International Airport in St Kitts, but was diverted to Antigua because of the problem. It turned out that the landing gear was in order, but the indicators in the cockpit gave a reading that there was a fault. Firefighters, medical personnel and police were on alert but, after clearance, the aircraft landed safely with its 42 passengers and three crew members.

• On 18 June 2009, a Rhoades cargo plane #2 engine caught fire while taxiing to the runway. The incident forced the temporary closure of the airport and delay of several aircraft. LIAT planes had to hold before they could land or take off, but there were no flight cancellations. There were two persons on board the Rhoades plane, the captain and first officer, both of whom were unhurt. The aircraft taxied on its own engines back to runway 10 where it underwent inspections and necessary repairs.

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

1. ^ Airport information for TAPA at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.Source: DAFIF.
2. ^ Airport information for ANU / TAPA at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective Oct. 2006).

External links

• V.C. Bird International Airport: Master Plan Report (PDF, 3.6 mb)
• Current weather for TAPA at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for ANU / TAPA at Aviation Safety Network