King Mswati III International Airport

King Mswati-III International Airport
IATA: SHO – ICAO: FDSK
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Government
Location Manzini, Swaziland
Coordinates 26°21′24″S 031°43′01″E / 26.35667°S 31.71694°ECoordinates: 26°21′24″S 031°43′01″E / 26.35667°S 31.71694°E
Map
SHO

Location of the airport in Swaziland

Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
02/20 11,810 3,600 Asphalt
Source: DAFIF[1][2] Google Earth[3]

King Mswati-III International Airport, (IATA: SHO, ICAO: FDSK) originally named Sikhuphe International Airport,[4] is an airport in Swaziland.[5] It is planned to replace Matsapha Airport, which serves largely as a charter airport for small regional carriers such as SA Airlink.[6] It is planned to handle up to 300,000 passengers per year.

Construction

Construction began in 2003 on this $150m project. The Taiwanese government contributed USD 22m to the project.[7]

It is part of King Mswati III's $1bn millennium project investment initiative to enhance Swaziland's position as a tourist destination, serving as a tourism gateway to Swaziland's game parks, Victoria Falls, Maputo, the Kruger National Park and KwaZulu-Natal game reserves.[6] However, it has been on the drawing board since 1980, and since then Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport has opened and Maputo and Durban airports have been upgraded.[8] There are also environmental concerns since Sikhupe is near Hlane game park, and may put rare species of eagles and vultures at risk.[9]

King Mswati-III International Airport was planned to replace Matsapha airport by 2010, with the latter being taken over by the army.[5][10]

King Mswati-III International Airport was inaugurated on 7 March 2014, despite the fact that it did not yet have a license to operate from the International Air Transport Association.[4] As of July 2014, no airline has used the airport,[11] and King Mswati III himself has even avoided it in favor of the existing Matsapha Airport.[12] There have been reports that the new airport does not yet have hangars or enough office space to accommodate any airline operators.[13]

Facilities

Plans include a 3,600m CAT 1 runway, and capacity for 300,000 passengers per year. It would be able to handle Boeing 747 aircraft, and service flights to any destination in the world.[6]

Airlines and destinations

Airlines Destinations
Airlink Johannesburg-OR Tambo
Swaziland Airlink Johannesburg-OR Tambo

References

  1. ↑ Airport information for FDMS from DAFIF (effective October 2013)
  2. ↑ Airport information for SHO at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective Oct. 2006).
  3. ↑ Google Earth - Sikhupe
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Swaziland king opens 'white elephant' airport". www.news24.com.ng. News24 Nigeria. 8 March 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014. Swaziland's ruler, however, defended the airport, which was built under the name Sikhuphe International Airport but was on Friday renamed King Mswati-III International Airport.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Sikhuphe to receive the world early next year". Retrieved 2010-08-15.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Sikhuphe International Airport, Swaziland". airport-technology.com. Net Resources International. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
  7. ↑ "Airport Development News" (PDF). ACI World. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
  8. ↑ "Swaziland's Millennium Projects". TradersAfrica.com. February–May 2005. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
  9. ↑ Hall, James (Sep 13, 2004). "A White Elephant for Those Jumbo Jets?". Inter Press Service News Agency. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
  10. ↑ Vilakati, Faith (14 September 2009). "Army to take over Matsapha Airport". The Swazi Observer. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
  11. ↑ "Swaziland: Swazis Not Convinced By King's Airport". allafrica.com. AllAfrica. 14 July 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014. The airport was officially opened in March 2014 by King Mswati, but to date no airline has used it.
  12. ↑ "Swaziland: King Mswati Snubs His Own Airport". allafrica.com. AllAfrica. 8 May 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  13. ↑ Mduduzi, Magagula (6 July 2014). "NO SPACE FOR AIRLINES AT KM3". times.co.sz. Times of Swaziland. Retrieved 15 July 2014.

External links