Guatemala City Airport

Aeropuerto Internacional La Aurora
Characteristics
ICAO code	MGGT
IATA code	GUA
Coordinates	14 ° 35 ′ 0 ″ N , 90 ° 31 ′ 39 ″ W Coordinates: 14 ° 35 ′ 0 ″ N , 90 ° 31 ′ 39 ″ W
Height above MSL	1509 m (4951 ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center	6 km south of Guatemala City
Street	11 Avenida Z13
Local transport	bus
Basic data
operator	Dirección General de Aeronautica Civil
Passengers	1,996,214 (2006)
Air freight	63,138 t (2006)
Flight ; movements	93,176 (2006)
Start-and runway
01/19	2987 m × 60 m asphalt

The International Airport of Guatemala City “La Aurora” (Spanish: Aeropuerto Internacional La Aurora, Ciudad de Guatemala ) is an international airport in Guatemala’s capital, Guatemala City . After completion of the renovation work and the first stage of the expansion program, it became the most modern airport in Central America at the end of 2007 . There are scheduled flights from German-speaking countries to Guatemala City via Mexico , the USA and Spain .

Construction work and plans

The terminal from the 1960s with its pier built in front of it was completely rebuilt from 2005 to 2007. Instead of going east, it now runs parallel to the runway in a north-south direction. Aircraft can dock on both sides of the northern pier, which was completed in 2007. The three further expansion stages initially envisage a pier in a southerly direction and then the extension of the two wings in a north and south direction. For this reason, the freight terminal in the south has to be removed. The headquarters of the Guatemalan Air Force will initially remain on the military section east of the runway . This part also serves as the government airport. Domestic and general aviation facilities are also located to the east and south .

Since the runway, which is almost three kilometers long, cannot be extended to the north (traffic axis Bulevar Liberación ) or to the south ( Colonia Santa Fé and Barranco Río Guadrón ), the airport, which is over 1500 meters high, is suitable for wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 747 or the Airbus A-340 can only be used to a limited extent. When fully fueled, machines of this size cannot take off from Guatemala on non-stop flights across the Atlantic. For this reason, Iberia , for example, is forced to operate flights to Madrid via Panama City or San Salvador . Since the rest of the airport is completely enclosed by residential areas and no more runways can be built, a major airport near Escuintla near the Pacific coast was planned for a long time . However, these plans have been abandoned for cost reasons.

Incidents

On June 8, 1978, a Douglas DC-6BF freighter of the Guatemalan Aviateca (TG-ADA) loaded with horses and cows and launched in Miami got out of control on the final approach to Guatemala City Airport and crashed on a small one in the middle of one Football field located in a residential area. Although the accident occurred in the urban area, apart from the three crew members killed on the ground, no one was injured. The cause of the accident was found to be a shift in the center of gravity on the final approach after the animals, which had not been properly tied down, moved around in the hold (see also flight accident involving a Douglas DC-6 in Guatemala City in 1978 ) .

On January 8, 1981, an engine failure and a defect in the associated generator were found on a Lockheed L-188 Electra of the Honduran SAHSA (HR-SAW) at La Aurora airport. The passengers disembarked and the captain decided to fly the machine with only three engines to Tegucigalpa for repairs . Shortly after taking off, the machine crashed into a residential area in Guatemala City and went up in flames. All six crew members - the only occupants - were killed and 38 people were injured on the ground. It turned out that another generator had failed during the initial climb, and the machine was trimmed incorrectly (see also the flight accident of a Lockheed L-188 Electra of the SAHSA ) .

On May 5, 1990, a Douglas DC-6BF freighter of the US Aerial Transit Company (N84BL) crashed into a residential area shortly after taking off from Guatemala City Airport. In addition to the three crew members, 24 people were killed on the ground. The machine was on its way to Miami when engine problems arose (see also a Douglas DC-6 accident in Guatemala City in 1990 ) .

On April 28, 1995, a Douglas DC-8-54AF Jet Trader (N43UA) coming from Miami , which was operated on a cargo flight by the US American Millon Air for Lineas Aereas Mayas , overran the runway end in Guatemala City and fell on an embankment down to a residential area. There were no fatalities on board the machine, but six people died on the ground (see also Millon Air flight 705 ) .

On December 21, 1999, one of two McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 shot the Cubana from AOM French Airlines (aircraft registration F-GTDI ) on Flight 1216 when landing in Guatemala City in wet weather over the runway and crashed down a slope. Of the 314 people on board, 16 died (see also Cubana flight 1216 ) .

On September 18, 2001, a Let L-410 of the Guatemalan Atlantic Airlines (TG-CFE) had an accident at the airport. On a scheduled flight from Guatemala City to San Pedro Sula in Honduras , there was a loss of control immediately after take-off, which resulted in a crash and the death of eight of the 13 occupants. The cause was an incorrect weight distribution in the machine (see also Atlantic Airlines flight 870 ) .