Moi International Airport


Moi International Airport is the international airport of Mombasa, the second-largest city in Kenya. It is located in Mombasa County in a township called Port Reitz, and features regional as well as intercontinental flights.

Overview

Moi International Airport serves the city of Mombasa and surrounding communities. It lies approximately, by air, southeast of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the largest and busiest airport in the country. Mombasa Airport is operated by Kenya Airports Authority. It was named after former Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi during his tenure.
At above sea level, the airport has two runways: Runway 1 measures in length and Runway 2 measures in length. Runway 1 is also known as Runway 03/21, while Runway 2 is also known as Runway 15/33. Runway 1 is equipped with an ILS.
There are two terminals at the airport. Terminal 1 is primarily used for international flights, while Terminal 2 is used for domestic flights. Some airlines such as Kenya Airways use Terminal 1 for both domestic and international.
In September 2018, it was confirmed that Qatar Airways would be introducing four weekly flights to Mombasa operating with the A320. The first flight commenced on 11 December 2018, with a flight time of just over 6 hours.

History

The airport was built during the Second World War by the Engineer Corps of the South African Army. During the war, it was used by the Fleet Air Arm as a land base of the British Eastern Fleet which was based at nearby Kilindini Harbour from 1942, by the Royal Air Force which operated anti-submarine Catalina flying boats off the East Africa coast and by the South African Air Force which was engaged in the war against Italy in Abyssinia. It was originally known as Port Reitz Airport.
Mombasa Airport was expanded to an international airport in 1979. Aircraft Maintenance facilities for private and light- to medium-size commercial aircraft are provided from government and private hangars by Benair Aircraft Engineering, licensed by the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority as an approved maintenance organisation.
Starting on the 18th of August 1992, Moi International Airport was used as the headquarters for the US Central Command's regional command and control headquarters for Operation Provide Relief until December 4 of that same year when it was subordinated and merged with Operation Restore Hope. The initial deployment of personnel from US Central Command included tactical communications specialists from the Joint Communications Support Element.
From July to September 1994, Moi International Airport was used almost continuously as a refueling station during the Operation Support Hope humanitarian mission into Rwanda. Empty C-141 and C-5 freighter jets returning to Europe flew to Mombasa due to the scarcity of fuel in the African interior. The airlift through Mombasa ceased by October due to runway expansion work.

Airlines and destinations

;Note