Rafael Núñez International Airport

History

The aerial activity in Cartagena began early in the 20th century when businessman Don Cartagena Nemesio de la Espriella and Don Guillermo Echavarria Antioch negotiations began in late 1919 to acquire a Farman F-40 aircraft made in France, the I arrive at the port which packed in boxes and disarming. They soon found the task of building a makeshift hangar at the site of Bocagrande, which was then an area of mangroves and where there were some recreational houses. There just a few years later they built the stunning Caribbean hotel. There was born the "Company Colombian airspace".

The first flight took place on February 14, 1920 when the plane "Cartagena" in charge of pilots Jourdanet Jacques René Bazin and began a flight around the city, carrying as passengers to Guillermo Echavarria Martinez Martelo Tulita and Queen of Carnival . The CCNA operated for only a few years, making flights of pleasure and appreciation to the neighboring towns and airmail to the city of Barranquilla, marking the beginning of commercial aviation activity in the country.

In 1930 the SCADTA built facilities to receive its first aircraft wheels on the airfield built on the island of Manzanillo. By 1940 the company had become Avianca and continued operating from Manzanillo to various domestic destinations. It was in mid-1946 when TACA de Colombia was forced to establish a subsidiary, which he called as the Airports Company SA Colombia, dedicated exclusively to the construction and maintenance of airfields and to provide technical maintenance for aircraft company land, and to compete effectively in the market dominated by Avianca. Remember that for many years until the mid-fifties when airports were acquired by the State, Avianca never authorized the use of its airports by other airlines and each business had to build their own facilities in the cities where they intended to operate.

In December 1946 it was inaugurated with great pomp Crespo Air Field in the city of Cartagena, which had been built by that subsidiary airport. Plans for the TACA de Colombia was to make the new aerodrome in the distribution center operations TACA group companies and eventually operate international flights to Panama, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and the United States, without interfering with operations Avianca and Pan American from the airport in Barranquilla, Soledad, and offering a healthy competition. With the suspension of operations of the company TACA de Colombia in April 1947, these plans were cut short. Crespo airport passed to LANSA company, already operating at the terminal since November 1946. LANSA airfield became famous during the festivities Crespo when novembrinas and the National Queen of Beauty, received the famous "real flights" to carry the candidates and their retinues, which were covered with widely deployed by major media in the country.

In 1979, Cartagena had 99 flights a week, 55 of which were shared flights, domestic and international flights were only 44 for the city. This flow was insufficient to meet the needs of the new hotel offering 7000 beds. In 1980 he organized the First Symposium for the Development of the City and the concerns raised and managed the tasks for the national government to end the redevelopment of the airport. And for 1982 was opened the new passenger terminal and extended runway to 2,600 feet, with his resurfacing and navigational aids valued at $1.4 million. They built a berm of 15 feet, as well as neighboring gutter to the runway and extended the platform. In addition, he built a waiting bay at the head of the track 3-6 for three aircraft, enabling the facilitation of air operations. It was concluded the perimeter wall and Juan Cano Angola and built houses for the monitoring of the safety zone. At the end of the year before had given the new parking service for 250 private cars, 14 positions for tour buses 120 and additional area for taxis and the access roads to the city. With the new facilities are expected to contribute to the growth of tourism in the city, while private investment was devoted to the recovery of the walled city with its old houses, real colonial relics.

During 1993 and 1994 in developing the principles established in the new Constitution of 1991 to improve governance, the Law 105 of 1993 and the national government of President Cesar Gaviria, by Decree 1647 of 994, arranged decentralization airports by the Civil Aeronautics and set the parameters for this process forward. The aim was therefore to improve the technical capacity of Civil Aviation to carry out the functions of operation, control, service development and maintenance of the system of air traffic control, monitoring of air operations, technical control, moving territorial entities and public companies, private or mixed economic management and operation of airports. The Civil Aviation together with the consulting firm Booz Allen & Hamilton, the outline design of decentralization and concession contracts.

As a result of the study, the COMP (Committee for Economic and Social Policy), Ministry of Finance instructed the Civil Aeronautics initiation of processes for delivery through concession contracts busiest airports in the country El Dorado International Airport in Bogota, Alfonso Bonilla Aragon International Airport in Cali, Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport in Barranquilla and finally Rafael Nuñez Airport in Cartagena. After the failed bidding process for the Cali airport, it was restarted with Rafael Nunez airport tender on November 14, 1995. Closed on February 26, 1996, with the award of contract to the Society Caribbean Airports S.A. (SACSA), which had as its operating partner at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands. The transfer from the airport to the private operator took effect on September 25, 1996 for a period of 15 years. The first two years were quite complicated, it was the first case of transfer from one airport to private hands. The flow of passengers and number of operations did not coincide with the projections, to the detriment of the economic balance of the contract and SACSA signature was on the verge of bankruptcy. There need to renegotiate the terms of the contract by the Civil Aeronautics to save the grant. In this process is compounded by the sudden death of the Concession Manager, Eric Okker and replacement of the operator partners. Schiphol withdrew from the project and assumed the role of operating partner, the Spanish company AENA, which during this period had also made the concession of the airport in Barranquilla Ernesto Cortissoz. SACSA Since then the company has handled the airport to make the investments necessary under the Master Plan for airport development, improving air and for the construction of seven bridges of collision, extension and maintenance of the platform of the main runway and taxiways.

Today, the Rafael Nunez International Airport is the fourth largest airport in the country, and one of the largest in the Caribbean region.

Airlines and destinations

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Capacity and structure