Cairo International Airport

Infobox Airport
name = Cairo International Airport
nativename-a = مطار القاهرة الدولي

---

IATA = CAI
ICAO = HECA
type = Public
owner =
operator = Cairo Airport Authority
city-served = Cairo, Egypt
location =
elevation-f = 382
elevation-m = 116
coordinates = coord|30|07|19|N|031|24|20|E|type:airport_region:EG
website = [http://www.cairo-airport.com/ www.cairo-airport.com]
metric-rwy = Y
r1-number = 05R/23L
r1-length-f = 13,120
r1-length-m = 3,999
r1-surface = Asphalt
r2-number = 05L/23R
r2-length-f = 10,830
r2-length-m = 3,301
r2-surface = Asphalt
r3-number = 16/34
r3-length-f = 10,427
r3-length-m = 3,178
r3-surface = Asphalt
r4-number =
r4-length-f = 13,124
r4-length-m = 4000
r4-surface = asphalt
footnotes = Sources: Airport website [http://www.cairo-airport.com/ Cairo International Airport] , official website] and DAFIFWAD|HECA|source=DAFIF] GCM|CAI|CAI / HECA|source=DAFIF]

Cairo International Airport Airport codes|CAI|HECA (Arabic: مطار القاهرة الدولي) is the busiest airport in Egypt and the primary hub for Star Alliance member EgyptAir. The airport is located to the north-east of the city around 15km from the business area of the city. The airport is administered by the Egyptian Holding Co. for Airports and Air Navigation (EHCAAN), which controls four companies including: Cairo Airport Co., Egyptian Airports Co., National Air Navigation Services and Aviation Information Technology and the Cairo Airport Authority (CAA), which is the regulatory body. In 2004, Fraport AG won the management contract to run the airport for 8 years. [cite web|url=http://www.fraport.com/cms/press_center/dok/31/31283.fraport_ag_wins_management_contract_for.htm|title=Fraport AG Wins Management Contract for Cairo Airport in Egypt|date=2004-12-20|accessdate=2008-10-10]

Cairo International is the second busiest airport in Africa after Johannesburg International Airport in South Africa. Cairo International Airport handles about 125,000 aircraft departures a year. Fact|date=September 2008With the assimilation of EgyptAir into Star Alliance in July 2008 the airport has the potential to be a major hub with its positioning between Africa, the Middle East and Europe (especially with facilities for the A380).In 2007, the airport served 12,577,524 passengers (+16.7% vs. 2006).The airport has two terminals with a third under construction (due to be completed by November 2008). There are also four runways and a single cargo terminal (the fourth runway was opened in early 2008). Runway 05R/23L is 3,300m long, 05L/23R has a length of 4,000m and 16/34 is 3,180m (all of the runways are 60m wide). The fourth runway, south of the existing airfield is 4,000m by 65m and suitable for the Airbus A380.

Terminals

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 was built in 1945. During World War II, the US built Payne Field Air Force Base to serve the Allied Forces, rather than take over the existing Almaza Airport, located 5 km away. When American forces left the base at the end of the war, the Civil Aviation Authority took over the facility and began using it for international civil aviation. In 1963, Cairo International Airport replaced the old Heliopolis Airport, which had been located at the Hike-Step area in the east of Cairo.The terminal facilities include Departure Hall 1, International Hall 3, and Hall 4 for Private & Non-commercial Aircraft Services. As part of the recent upgrading and facility improvement scheme, the CAA demolished the old hall 3, previously used for domestic arrivals and departures, to reconstruct a new hall to be used for international arrivals. Terminal 1 is commonly known as the "Old Airport," although its facilities were recently given a complete overhaul and are newer than those of Terminal 2, which is still known as the "New Airport."

Terminal 1 is used by EgyptAir for its domestic and international flights. It is also used by El Al, several airlines from the Arab world, and an increasing number of other foreign carriers, such as Air France, which transferred operations from Terminal 2 in 2006. Terminal 1 has 12 gates

The CAA has also inaugurated the "Airport City Concept," to provide an array of services and entertainment facilities to travelers, airport visitors, as well as the general public. The first phase of this, a new shopping mall called the AirMall has been built near Terminal 1's New International Arrival Hall 3.

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 was inaugurated in 1986. [cite web|url=http://www.cairo-airport.com/airport_history2.asp|title=Airport History|publisher=Cairo International Airport|accessdate=2008-10-10] It serves primarily European and Far Eastern airlines, airlines from the Gulf region, and sub-Saharan Africa. After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, all flights to the US and Canada, including those operated by EgyptAir, were transferred to Terminal 2. EgyptAir has since returned its North American services to Terminal 1 following the completion of renovations.

The architecture of the terminal building limits the possibility of expansion. There is significant congestion when more than 3 flights check in simultaneously, or more than 2 planes arrive at the same time.The terminal itself has 7 boarding gates. Capacity rarely reaches that maximum.

In July 2008 the Cairo Airport Company (CAC) said it would allocate $400 million to develop the airport's Terminal 2. The move is meant to increase the terminal capacity from 3 million passengers to 7.5 million annually. Fathi Fathallah, the CAC chairman, said renovation works would start in mid 2009. The project will double the terminal's capacity, but also to upgrade services offered to passengers, “in line with the high quality of services offered by Terminal 3, which will be inaugurated in October,” he said.

Terminal 3

Given projected growth, and the limited ability to expand Terminal 2, the CAA has begun construction of Terminal 3, which is currently scheduled to open in fall 2008. It will be located adjacent to Terminal 2, and the two terminals will be connected by a bridge. Access roads will be redesigned, and the parking lots will be relocated. The terminal was originally projected to open by the end of 2007 but this was delayed to late 2008. Fact|date=September 2008

With its hub at the airport EgyptAir's operations will be overhauled with the opening of the state of the art Terminal 3. The airline will transfer all its operations (international and domestic) to the terminal. To implement the Star Alliance “Move Under One Roof” concept all alliance members serving the airport will relocate to the terminal.

The official opening ceremony will take place in October to coincide with several Egyptian national holidays. Operations at the terminal will take place in several phases with the first phase beginning 17th November 2008 when EgyptAir Express (EgyptAir's domestic subsidiary) move all operations to the new building. This will be followed by EgyptAir's own domestic flights, then its international operations and finally those of Star Alliance members.

The terminal includes:

*A 164,000 m² three-level main building with mezzanines housing arrivals/departures halls, basement facilities, baggage handling, workshops, electro-mechanical area and retail outlets.

*Two piers of extendible capacity and gates facilities serving domestic and international traffic, handled through contact and remote. The main building and the piers are connected by concourses. There will be 23 gates. Two of the gates will be equipped to handle the Airbus A380 aircraft.

*Land side works including bridges and fly-over serving the traffic to and from the terminal building, surface car park areas, a new access road connecting the airport with the Autostrad road|Autostrad (Cairo ring road) and upgrading the access road.

*A luxury 350-room five-star hotel, to open as Le Méridien Cairo Airport will open at the beginning of 2010 as part of the terminal (with a direct connection to the building).

Upon completion of this terminal, Cairo International Airport will double its airport capacity. Fact|date=September 2008

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines have scheduled services from Cairo International Airport as of October 2008:
*Aegean Airlines (Athens, Alexandroupolis, Kerkyra, Chania, Heraklion, Ioannina, Chio, Mikonos, Thira, Kos, Kavala, Mytilene, Rhodes, Thessaloniki, Samos) [http://www.theairdb.com/airport/CAI.html]
*Aeroflot (Moscow-Sheremetyevo)
*Aerosvit Airlines (Kiev-Boryspil)
*Afriqiyah Airways (Tripoli)
*Air Algérie (Algiers)
*Air France (Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
*Air Memphis (various charter routes - domestic and international)
*Air Sinai (Tel Aviv)
*Alexandria Airlines (Alexandria, Aqaba, Luxor and other charter destinations)
*Alitalia (Milan-Malpensa, Rome-Fiumicino)
*Austrian Airlines (Vienna)
*AMC Airlines (Istanbul-Sabiha Gokcen, Luxor, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sharm El Sheikh and various charter routes - domestic and international)
*bmi (London-Heathrow)
*British Airways (London-Heathrow)
*Buraq Air (Tripoli)
*Cairo Aviation (various charter routes - domestic and international)
*Cyprus Airways (Larnaca)
*Czech Airlines (Prague)
*Delta Air Lines (New York-JFK)
*EgyptAir (Abu Dhabi, Abu Simbel, Accra, Addis Ababa, Al Ain [restarts April 2009] , Aleppo, Alexandria, Algiers, Amman, Amsterdam, Asmara, Assiut, Aswan, Athens, Bahrain, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Barcelona, Beijing, Beirut, Benghazi, Berlin-Schönefeld, Brussels, Budapest, Casablanca, Damascus, Dammam, Doha, Dubai, Düsseldorf, Entebbe, Frankfurt, Geneva, Guangzhou, Hurghada, Istanbul-Atatürk, Jeddah, Johannesburg, Kano, Khartoum, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Lagos, Larnaca, Lisbon, London-Heathrow, Luxor, Kuwait, Madrid, Madina, Milan-Malpensa, Montréal [seasonal] , Moscow-Domodedovo, Mumbai, Munich, Muscat, Nairobi, New York-JFK, Osaka-Kansai, Paphos, Paris Charles-de-Gaulle, Riyadh, Rome-Fiumicino, Sanaa, Sharjah, Sharm El Sheikh, Tel Aviv [begins 8th November 08] , Tokyo-Narita, Tripoli, Tunis, Vienna, Washington Dulles International Airport)
*EgyptAir Express (Alexandria, Aswan, Hurghada, Luxor, Malta, Mersa Metruh, Marsa Alam, Sharm El Sheikh)
*El Al (Tel Aviv)
*Emirates (Dubai)
*Ethiopian Airlines (Addis Ababa, Khartoum)
*Etihad Airways (Abu Dhabi)
*Eurocypria Airlines (Paphos)
*Gulf Air (Bahrain)
*Iberia Airlines (Madrid)
*Iberworld (Madrid)
*Iraqi Airways (Baghdad)
*Jetairfly (Brussels)
*Kenya Airways (Khartoum, Nairobi)
*KLM (Amsterdam)
*Koral Blue Airlines (Hurghada, Sharm el Sheikh)
*Korean Air (Seoul-Incheon)
*Kuwait Airways (Kuwait)
*Libyan Airlines (Benghazi, Sebha, Tripoli)
*Lotus Air (Gdansk, Hurghada, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sharm el Sheikh, Warsaw)
*Lufthansa (Frankfurt)
*Luxor Air (various charter routes - domestic and international)
*Middle East Airlines (Beirut)
*Meridiana (Milan) [http://www.theairdb.com/airport/CAI.html]
*Malaysian Airlines (Kuala Lumpur)
*Nile Air (Riyadh, Jeddah, Medina, Dammam, Kuwait, Dubai, Doha, Bahrain)
*Olympic Airlines (Athens)
*Oman Air (Muscat)
*Petroleum Air Services (various domestic airports and oilfield airstrips)
*Qatar Airways (Doha)
*Royal Air Maroc (Casablanca, Riyadh)
*Royal Jordanian (Amman, Aqaba)
*Saudi Arabian Airlines (Dammam, Jeddah, Madina, Riyadh)
*Singapore Airlines (Singapore)
*Sudan Airways (Khartoum, Port Sudan)
*Swiss International Air Lines (Zürich)
*Syrian Arab Airlines (Aleppo, Damascus, Latakia)
*TAROM (Bucharest-Otopeni)
*Turkish Airlines (Istanbul-Atatürk)
*TUIfly (Cologne, Berlin-Tegel, Berlin-Schoenefeld, Frankfurt, Munich)
*Tunis Air (Tunis)
*Yemenia (Aden, London-Heathrow, Sana'a)

Cargo airlines

*Egyptair Cargo (Frankfurt-Hahn, Kharthoum, Sharjah, Bordeaux, Ostend, London-Stansted)
*Tristar Air (Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, Manston, Sharm El Sheikh)
*Royal Jordanian (Amman, Aqaba)
*Air France Cargo(Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Lyon, Marseille)
*Saudi Arabian Airlines (Medinah, Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam)
*Ethiopian Airlines (Addis Abeba , Brussels)
*Thai Airways International (Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Phuket, Karachi)
*DAS Air Cargo (Manston)
*Lufthansa Cargo (Frankfurt)
*MK Airlines Cargo (Manston, Ostend)

Ground Transportation

A free shuttle bus links the two terminals, 3 km (1.9 miles) apart. The bus runs 24 hours a day and departs approximately every 30 minutes.

The airport is connected to the city by two roads, the main access road is the Salah Salem Road that goes through Heliopolis from downtown and another secondary road, the Autostrad road.

A newly established shuttle bus service reaches to several destinations such as Heliopolis, Nasr City, Downtown Cairo, Giza, Mohandesin, Zamalek, Maadi and Haram (Pyramids area).

The Airport Bus Service (both air-conditioned and non air-conditioned) operates from Terminal 1. There are several bus stop at Tahrir Square, downtown Cairo, Mohandesin, and along Pyramids Road in Giza.

Future plans

There are plans to expand the Cairo Metro to serve the airport. The new line, which is in an advanced stage of planning, will link the airport at one end, and Mohandessin (in Giza), at the other. It is expected to be operational by 2010.

Disasters

Cairo International Airport has been the origination or termination for several flights that did not reach their final destination properly:
*On May 20 1965, Pakistan International Airlines Flight PK 705 the inaugural flight on the Karachi - Dhahran - Cairo - London route crashed during a scheduled night approach to Runway 34 at Cairo International Airport, after the crew failed to monitor and correct the descent rate. 119 of the 125 on board the Boeing 720 - 040 B (AP - AMH) were killed.
*On March 19 1972, EgyptAir Flight 763 crashed in Vietnam killing all 30 passengers on board.
*On December 25 1976, EgyptAir Flight 864 crashed into an industrial complex in Bangkok, Thailand, after crew failed to correct the descent rate. 20 of the 52 on board were killed. Another 72 on the ground were killed in the crash.
*On November 24 1985, EgyptAir Flight 648 was hijacked in Luqa, Malta. Grenades were set off on board and 60 of the 96 passengers and crew members perished.
*On October 31 1999, EgyptAir Flight 990, heading from New York JFK, crashed off Nantucket, Massachusetts, USA. All 217 passengers and crew members were killed. The cause of the crash remains disputed.

References

External links

*NWS-current|HECA
*ASN|CAI|CAI / HECA