Banjul International Airport

Banjul International Airport
Summary
Airport type Public
Serves Banjul
Location Banjul, Gambia
Elevation AMSL 29 m / 95 ft
Coordinates 13°20′16.66″N 16°39′07.94″W / 13.3379611°N 16.6522056°W / 13.3379611; -16.6522056Coordinates: 13°20′16.66″N 16°39′07.94″W / 13.3379611°N 16.6522056°W / 13.3379611; -16.6522056
Map
BJL
Location of airport in Gambia
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
14/32 3,600 11,811 Asphalt

Banjul International Airport, also known as Yundum International (IATA: BJL, ICAO: GBYD), is the international airport of Banjul, capital of the Gambia, built during World War II.[1]

History

The only airport in Gambia is at Yundum. After World War 2, Yundum airport was used for passenger flights. Both British South American Airways and the British Overseas Airways Corporation had services, the former moving its service to Dakar, which had a concrete runway (as opposed to pierced steel planking).[2] The airport was rebuilt in 1963 and the building is still in use today.

Overview

The head office of the Gambia Civil Aviation Authority is located on the airport property.[3]

In the event of an emergency on any of the NASA Space Shuttles, Banjul International Airport had been selected as an augmented landing site. Gambia was the perfect location when the shuttle was launched with a low, 28-degree inclination.[4][5] In 2001 NASA announced that Banjul airport would no longer be used as an augmented landing site because latterly, NASA would launch shuttles up at 51.6 degrees to the International Space Station, making air bases in Spain and France more suitable for an emergency landing.[6]

The airport was the main hub of Gambia Bird until the airline ceased operations in late 2014.

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Air Peace Dakar–Diass, Freetown, Lagos
Arik Air Accra, Lagos
ASKY Airlines Accra, Freetown, Lomé
Binter Canarias Gran Canaria
Brussels Airlines Brussels, Dakar–Diass
Corendon Dutch Airlines Seasonal: Amsterdam, Maastricht/Aachen (begins 3 November 2018)[7]
Enter Air Seasonal charter: Katowice
Fly Mid AfricaAccra, Dakar-Diass, Lagos[8]
Royal Air Maroc Casablanca
TAP Air Portugal Lisbon (begins 15 June 2019)[9]
Thomas Cook Airlines Seasonal: Birmingham, London–Gatwick, Manchester
Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia Seasonal charter: Stockholm–Arlanda, Copenhagen (begins 30 October 2018), Helsinki
Transavia Seasonal charter: Amsterdam
TUI fly Belgium Seasonal: Brussels
TUI fly Netherlands Amsterdam
Turkish Airlines Istanbul–Atatürk (begins 26 November 2018)[10]
Vueling Barcelona

Accidents and incidents

  • On 4 July 1946, a Bristol Freighter 170 with registration G-AHJB, flying from Bathurst (now Banjul) to Natal on a delivery flight to Argentina, experienced a fuel shortage that forced the crew to ditch the plane. The crewmembers were rescued by an American Steamer. The probable cause was powerplant failure resulting from shortage of fuel due to faulty navigation. No one died in the accident.[11]
  • On 7 September 1946, a British South American Airways Avro 685 York I with registration G-AHEW, named "Star Leader", flying from London to Buenos Aires via Lisbon, Bathurst (Banjul)-Jeshwang, Natal, Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont and Montevideo, lost control and crashed shortly after takeoff from Bathurst. The cause of the loss of control cannot be determined with certainty, but a mishandling of the controls by the captain is the most likely explanation. All 24 occupants died.[12][13][14]
  • On 10 October 1997 a Beechcraft 200 Super King Air operated by NAYSA Aerotaxis crashed on approach 3 miles before the runway. All but 1 of the 10 occupants died.

See also

Notes

    References

    1. ↑ "Yundum". Britannica Online encyclopedia. Retrieved 10 August 2012.
    2. ↑ "Hansard HC Deb 29 January 1947, vol 432, cols 202".
    3. ↑ "APPLICATION FOR A FLIGHT PERMIT." (Archive) Gambia Civil Aviation Authority. Retrieved on 28 January 2013. "THE GAMBIA CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY BANJUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT P.O. BOX 285 BANJUL, THE GAMBIA"
    4. ↑ "SPACE SHUTTLE EMERGENCY LANDING SITES". globalsecurity.org. 2011-07-20. Archived from the original on 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
    5. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 July 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
    6. ↑ Lacey, Marc (4 September 2005). "Memories Linger Where NASA Lights Shone in Gambia". The New York Times.
    7. ↑ http://www.corendon.com/en-EN/ticket-banjul#
    8. ↑ "Fly Mid Africa Airline starts operations May 15, 2017". thepoint.gm. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
    9. ↑ https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/empresas/tap-vai-lancar-15-novas-rotas-e-fazer-milhares-de-contratacoes/
    10. ↑ https://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/278863/turkish-airlines-adds-banjul-from-late-nov-2018/
    11. ↑ "Accident description G-AHJB". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
    12. ↑ "Accident description G-AHEW". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
    13. ↑ "23 Killed in Crash of Plane in Africa". Pittsburg Press. 7 September 1946. p. 1.
    14. ↑ B.S.A.A. York which crashed soon after take-off at night from Yundum airfield on September 7th, 1946, Access August 2011
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