- José María Córdova International Airport
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José María Córdova International Airport
Aeropuerto Internacional José María CórdovaIATA: MDE – ICAO: SKRG Location of airport in Colombia
MDESummary Airport type Commercial Operator AirPlan Serves Medellín Location Rionegro Hub for Tampa Cargo Elevation AMSL 2,142 m / 7,027 ft Coordinates 06°10′02″N 75°25′36″W / 6.16722°N 75.42667°W Runways Direction Length Surface m ft 18/36 3,557 11,483 Paved Statistics (2010) Passengers movement 3.541.020 Cargo movement 105.264 T Air operations 49.891 Sources: José María Córdova International Airport (IATA: MDE, ICAO: SKRG) is the main airport serving the Colombian city of Medellín and its surrounding metropolitan area. The airport is located about 30 minutes from the urban area by the new Las Palmas express way, in the municipality of Rionegro. It is the second largest airport in Colombia after the El Dorado International Airport of Bogotá in terms of infrastructure and passenger service.
It's the most important airport in the department of Antioquia, which serves the metropolitan area and Valle de Aburrá. In terms of infrastructure, it is the most important in western Colombia. It is one of the most important airports in the country, currently serving several international destinations, one of the busiest being the route to Miami International Airport. The airport also serves the most flown route within Colombia (Medellin-Bogota), which is currently served by main airlines, mainly Avianca, Copa Airlines Colombia, and AIRES. In the recent years, some significant upgrades have been made regarding its technology and infrastructure, making it one of the most recognized airports in Colombia. LCD Screens have been added, as well as service to European Destinations and new ones in south america.
International traffic departs from JMC towards destinations in the United States, Panama, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Spain, The airport also serves domestic flights to most major Colombian cities such as Bogota, Cali, Barranquilla, Cartagena, Santa Marta and San Andres Island. Freight transport is also one of the strengths of the terminal, providing air transportation to most of the flower output (and other products) from eastern Antioquia bound to South, Central and North America, and Europe.
Since its inauguration in 1985 until 1990, the terminal had heavy passenger and cargo movement, in part because the Enrique Olaya Herrera Airport, which is located in Medellín, was closed. When it reopened, traffic reduced. However, since 1993, there has been a steady increase in traffic, due to an increase in the number of airlines flying into the airport, including American Airlines, LAN, Taca, Aerogal. As for cargo airlines, Martinair, Centurion Air Cargo, ABSA, and Florida West International Airways and national freight airlines such as Tampa Cargo, LANCO, AeroSucre have increased their flights to the terminal. The airport is currently undergoing a comprehensive renovation.
Contents
Description
The airport serves all major international and domestic routes in contrast to Olaya Herrera Airport which also serves the Medellín area with regional flights and airlines. José María Córdova is set for a major expansion which will include new international terminals and an expansion on the cargo terminal this is set to start next year according to the Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics. The airport is named after José María Córdova, a Colombian army general who was a native of Ríonegro City.
The José María Córdova International Airport is the second in Colombia in total passenger and cargo also international, national and international after the El Dorado International Airport in Bogota. The runway is also used by the nearby military base in the Air Force of Colombia located in Rio Negro, named Air Combat Command No. 5 (CACOM 5), where all types of aircraft arriving military and national police.
The airport has air navigation aids such as VOR, NDB, ILS, which allows greater ease of operation for the drivers and safer to operate in bad weather, is located to 2,137 meters. In January 2006, the Airbus A380, landed at the air terminal (first time on American soil) to conduct technical tests of the engines. As for the cargo terminal, most of the production of flowers and other products in the region of eastern Antioquia out by the airport. TAMPA The airline has its main base at the airport, and operates flights to countries from South, Central and North America. The same has a platform that can accommodate up to ten aircraft, you can receive all types of aircraft, including Boeing 747, Douglas DC-10, Boeing 767, among the most commonly arrive at the terminal, in addition, the terminal is near the customs area and Airline hangars Tampa Cargo.
The airport has three restaurants and a shopping area, where are banks, ATMs, money exchange and car rental. Also the airline Avianca has a VIP room inside the facilities serving domestic and international flights. Outside the main building with a parking lot with a capacity for 250 cars and an area for motorcycles.
History
In the background control tower and sculpture El Sol de Edgar Negret
Between 1930 and 1932, three wealthy families in the metropolitan area of Medellin, began with the idea of providing the city with an airport, as they were part of the Colombian Air Navigation Company which sought to carry passengers and mail from the city of Medellin to Puerto Berrio, then along the Magdalena River and ultimately connect the cities of Medellin and Bogotá. One of the most important was Gonzalo Mejia, who in a very colloquial decided what would be the only place where you could build an airport, this place was confirmed by the Curtiss Wright firm based in New York.
After several obstacles, the city of Medellín has finally accepted the construction of an unpaved runway about 974 m long. Soon many flights began arriving companies and Saco Scadta from the cities of Barranquilla and Bogotá. Finally the city understood the importance of air transport. Then in the 70s saw the need for a large airport for the city, due to saturation and the limitations of Olaya Herrera, in addition to not being within the city, two sites were defined to build a new airport in the vicinity of the municipality of Barbosa, and another in the valley of San Nicolas in Eastern Antioquia near Rionegro, finally took place in Rionegro, its construction was executed signature CES-DARC-TAMS.
It was opened in 1985. In the same year he tested the Boeing 747 by Avianca in the original runway (Olaya Herrera) to be tested later in the José María Córdova. During this time the airport had a lot of movement of cargo and passengers, as the operations from the Olaya Herrera declined to almost zero (both airports today have a lot of traffic, being more numerous destinations and the operations of Olaya Herrera).
The airport is named Jose Maria Cordova, in honor of this character, besides being a native of Antioquia and the region where the airport was built (born in Concepción, Antioquia), a municipality located in the north eastern Antioquia Rionegro held senior positions in the administration, and played important roles in the history of the nation.
Modernisation Jose Maria Cordova
Main building of José María Córdova Intl. AirportIn José María Córdova Airport anticipates the modernisation plan that includes various infrastructure projects, that will make this an airport terminal very attractive for tourists as for airlines. The community will find different and varied services at this terminal as:
- The construction of a cargo terminal connected to the runway
- Expansion of the passenger terminal, the national spring
- Reinstatement of the road marking
- Organisation of the aircraft parking
- Recovery areas for terraces and gardens
- Recovery dome
- Gateways for the separation of passenger flow: incoming and outgoing
- Twelve new positions approach
- New escalators
- Structural design stairs
- Equalisation runway strip
- Resurfacing of runway and taxiway
- Complement and arrangement of the lighting platform.
- Separation of flows: the first airport in Colombia have separation of flows according to the International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO.
Within the works, too modernisation passengers will find security systems, flight information via digital displays, high-tech communication, passenger arrival lounges with shopping, improving health services Airport, improvement in firefighting services, improving baggage handling systems. The objectives of the modernisation and expansion plan are: to ensure aviation safety and comfort of passengers and their companions; meet the requirements of ICAO - International Civil Aviation, the AEROCIVIL - Colombian Civil Aviation Authority, and IATA-International Air Transport Association. Finally, with the transformation of José María Córdova International Airport it also seeks to contribute to the country's competitiveness through: the creation of spaces that enable optimal connectivity with other cities in the world, the development of new areas that are attractive to airlines , the creation of zones that favour the encounter of citizens and, of course, compliance with new policies of quality for passengers to enjoy the best service at time of travel.
Busiest International Routes (roundtrip) out of José María Córdova International Airport (Jan-Aug 2011) Rank City Passengers % Change 1 
Panama, Panama144.214 
21,36%2 
Miami, United States127.537 
16,84%3 Fort Lauderdale, United states50.381 3,47%4 New York, United States45.264 13,12%5 
Quito, Ecuador55.973 9,94%6 
Madrid, Spain28.465 278,68%7 
Caracas, Venezuela15.638 14,62%8 
Lima, Peru10.875 22,97%9 
Willemstad, Curacao5.328 New Airlines and destinations
Airlines Destinations Aires Bogotá
Seasonal: San Andrés IslandAmerican Airlines Miami Avianca Barranquilla, Bogotá, Cali, Cartagena, Madrid , Miami
Seasonal New York-JFK, San Andrés IslandCopa Airlines Colombia Bogotá, Caracas, Panama City, San Andrés Island Insel Air Curacao LAN Perú Lima, Quito Spirit Airlines Fort Lauderdale TACA Airlines operated by Lacsa Panama City, San José de Costa Rica TACA Perú Lima TACA Peru operated by AeroGal Quito Cargo airlines
- AeroSucre
- ABSA Cargo Airline
- Centurion Air Cargo
- Cielos Airlines
- Florida West International Airways
- Kalitta Air
- Líneas Aéreas Suramericanas
- LAN Cargo
- LANCO
- MasAir
- Master Top Airlines
- Tampa Cargo
- Tradewinds Airlines
Accidents and incidents
- On December 21, 1996, an Antonov 32B aircraft type, registration HK-4008X, airline collided Forest when he was on final approach to runway 36 of the airport. The aircraft took off from Bogota to his usual cargo flight José María Córdova Airport with 6 tons from newspapers and other items in the approach phase, the plane was diverted three miles to the left of the glide slope, then turned sharply right, finally an accident more than five miles from the south end of the airport. In crash killed all four occupants of the aircraft.
- On December 22, 1998, an Antonov 32B aircraft type, registration HK-3930X, airline collided Forest when he was on final approach to runway 36 of the airport. The aircraft took off from Bogota for a cargo flight to the airport in Rio Negro, the accident occurred at dawn and weather conditions were very bad for the dense fog that was present in the area. The accident killed the five occupants of the aircraft. A similar incident had occurred two years earlier, with a plane of the same company in similar circumstances.
- On October 15, 2004, an aircraft type Douglas DC-3 left the company Aerovanguardia Villavicencio at 6:30 am for a cargo flight to the airport José María Córdova, 7:30 control airport air traffic informed the pilots that the airport was closed due to poor visibility caused by fog. The pilot of the aircraft, registration HK-1503, decided to direct the aircraft to fly to the alternate and Olaya Herrera Airport, but during the descent, the aircraft collided with a power cable and crashed in a wooded area of the township Santa Elena, east of Medellin, killing all three occupants of the aircraft.
- On June 7, 2006, a Tradewinds Airlines Boeing 747-200F (registration N922FT) had an engine failure on takeoff at José María Córdova International Airport. The pilot aborted, but the plane overran the runway. None of the 6 on board were injured. The plane was substantially damaged. The event was captured on airport surveillance cameras- Watch Video Link to the accident report
- On January 3, 2009 Flight 924 a Boeing 737-800 of American Airlines that had taken off from Jose Maria Cordova Airport towards ten o'clock he had to make an emergency landing because it has fire in one of its engines. Upon landing the pilot was forced to use the brakes to the maximum because the airline lost 50 percent of their engines, touching the runway braking system overheated and one of his tires exploded. Airport operations were closed for four hours. The plane was carrying 148 passengers who were uninjured in the emergency.
See also
References
External links
Airplan - Website (Spanish)
Categories:- South American airport stubs
- Colombian building and structure stubs
- Airports in Colombia
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