Bosaso Airport

Bender Qassim International Airport

Entrance to the airport
IATA: BSA – ICAO: HCMF
Summary
Airport type Public
Owner Puntland Ministry of Aviation and Airports
Serves Bosaso, Somalia
Elevation AMSL 3 ft / 1 m
Coordinates 11°16′32″N 049°09′00″E / 11.27556°N 49.15000°E / 11.27556; 49.15000Coordinates: 11°16′32″N 049°09′00″E / 11.27556°N 49.15000°E / 11.27556; 49.15000
Map
HCMF

Location of airport in Somalia

Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
09/27 8,694 2,650 Concrete/Asphalt

Bosaso Airport (IATA: BSA, ICAO: HCMF), also known as Bender Qassim International Airport, is an airport in Somalia. It sits at 11°16′32″N 49°9′0″E on the outer edge of the city of Bosaso, the commercial capital of the northeastern Puntland macro-region and adjacent to the Gulf of Aden. It is the third largest airport in the country after the Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu and the Hargeisa International Airport in Hargeisa.

History

Construction of the Bender Qassim International Airport started in 2007. Funds for the project were initially supplied by United Arab Emirates-based financiers.[1]

The Bender Qassim International Airport in 2007, prior to renovations.

In 2008, the Puntland government signed a multi-million dollar deal with Dubai's Lootah Group, a regional industrial organization operating in the Middle East and Africa. According to the agreement, the first phase of the investment is worth Dhs 170m and would see a set of new companies established to operate, manage and build Bosaso's free trade zone and sea and airport facilities. The Bosaso Airport Company was also slated to develop the airport complex to meet international standards, including a new 3.4 km runway, main and auxiliary buildings, taxi and apron areas, and security perimeters.[2]

Following the 2008 Puntland presidential elections, airport renovations came to a standstill as greater focus was placed on activities in the regional capital of Garowe.[1]

In 2012, a Product-Sharing Agreement signed between the Puntland government and the Australian oil company Range Resources earmarked $5 million for the construction of an airport runway. Renovations subsequently resumed, with a bricklaying ceremony for the new runway held in November of the year at the Bender Qassim International Airport. The event was attended by various Puntland government officials and businesspeople, including Bosaso Mayor Hassan Abdallah Hassan, Bari region Governor Abdisamad Gallan, and Ministry of Aviation official Saida Hussein Ali.[1]

In late September 2013, a launching ceremony of tender process for the Bosaso airport's renovations was held at the facility. The event was attended by Puntland government and aviation officials as well as representatives of around 20 international companies, with over 24 firms vying for the project. The tender is slated to be closed in mid-October. According to Puntland Deputy Minister of Civil Aviation Abdiqani Gelle, the winner of the tender process is then scheduled to mobilize its operation within a two-month period. The airport renovations are being overseen by the Puntland government, with the Italian authorities funding the project through UNOPS. It will include the extension of the Bosaso airport's gravel runway from 1,800 m to 2,650 m. The runway's width will also be widened from 30 m to 45 m, and feature 7.5 m gravel shoulders on both sides. According to Gelle, the Puntland government plans to carry out similar upgrades at the Garowe, Galkayo and Qardho airports.[3]

In December 2014, the foundation stone for a new runway was laid at the airport. The inauguration event was attended by cabinet ministers, legislators, traditional leaders, and various international officials, including tender winner China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, financial partner and Ambassador of Italy to Somalia Farbizio Marcelli, and United Nations Office for Project Services representatives. The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation is now slated to upgrade the airport's existing gravel runway, pave it with asphalt, and convert it from 1.8 km to 2.65 km in accordance with the code 4C operations clause.[4]

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines offer scheduled passenger service:

AirlinesDestinations
African Express Airways Aden (suspended),[5] Berbera, Galkayo, Nairobi-Jomo Kenyatta, Wajir
African Airways Alliance Hargeisa

Accidents and incidents

Date Location Aircraft Tail number Aircraft damage Fatalities Description Refs
16 August 1975 Bosaso Douglas C-47A 6O-SAC W/O 0/11 A Somali Airlines aircraft crashed shortly after take-off, following an engine malfunction believed to have been caused by contaminated fuel. All eleven people on board survived. [6]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 "Puntland Lays First Brick on a New Airport Runway in Bosaso". Dissident Nation. 5 November 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
  2. ↑ "Government of Punt Land State of Somalia, Lootah Investment sign strategic agreements worth Dhs170m". Ameinfo.com. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  3. ↑ "Somalia: 20 companies compete for Bossaso Airport runway bid". Garowe Online. 30 September 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
  4. ↑ "Somalia: Puntland President lays foundation stone for Bossaso airport runway". Garowe Online. 4 December 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
  5. ↑ "Yémen : fermeture de l'aéroport d'Aden pour des raisons de sécurité (source aéropotuaire)" (in French). L'Orient Le Jour. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  6. ↑ "6O-SAC Accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 21 August 2010.

References


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