Airport type Public Elevation AMSL 3 m / 9 ft | Serves Nouakchott 06/24 2,400 | |
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Owner Government of Mauritania Hub for Mauritania Airlines International Address aéroport inauguré à Nouakchott--Oumtounsy, Nouakchott, Islamic Republic of Mauritania | ||
Nouakchott–Oumtounsy International Airport (IATA: NKC, ICAO: GQNO) (Arabic: مطار نواكشوط الدولي - أم التونسي) is an international airport serving Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania. It is located 25 kilometres (16 mi) north of the city. The airport opened in June 2016 as the replacement for Nouakchott International Airport.
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History
Egis Group designed the airport, which is the largest project in Mauritania since 1960. The Government of Mauritania approved the plan on 13 October 2011, and local company Najah for Major Works (NMW) started construction the following month.
Oumtounsy Airport opened on 23 June 2016, in time for the 27th Arab League summit in late July. It replaces Nouakchott International Airport, which is located 25 kilometres (16 mi) to the south in the city centre. A Mauritania Airlines International flight from Zouérat arrived at 12:00, becoming the first to land at the airport. President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz arrived in the afternoon to inaugurate the airport amid the landing of the first international flight, that of Turkish Airlines from Istanbul–Atatürk.
Infrastructure
The 30,000-square-metre (320,000 sq ft) passenger terminal has four jet bridges and can handle 2 million passengers per year. There is also a dedicated terminal for air cargo and a VIP reception area.
Runways
The airport has two runways:
Access
Nouakchott–Oumtounsy International Airport is connected to the city of Nouakchott by Sheikh Zayed Road.