Pinto Martins – Fortaleza International Airport

Pinto Martins – Fortaleza International Airport Aeroporto Internacional Pinto Martins – Fortaleza
IATA: FOR – ICAO: SBFZ
Summary
Airport type	Public/Military
Operator	Infraero
Serves	Fortaleza
Elevation AMSL	25 m / 82 ft
Coordinates	03°46′33″S 038°31′56″W / 3.77583°S 38.53222°WCoordinates: 03°46′33″S 038°31′56″W / 3.77583°S 38.53222°W
Website	Infraero FOR
Map
FOR Location in Brazil
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 13/31 2,545 8,350 Asphalt
Statistics (2013)
Passengers 5,952,629 Aircraft Operations 66,814 Metric tonnes of cargo 39,389
Statistics: Infraero[1] Sources: Airport Website,[2] ANAC[3]

Pinto Martins – Fortaleza International Airport (IATA: FOR, ICAO: SBFZ) is the airport serving Fortaleza, Brazil. It is named after Euclides Pinto Martins (1892–1924) a Ceará-born aviator, who in 1922 was one of the pioneers of the air-link between New York and Rio de Janeiro.

It is operated by Infraero.

Some of its facilities are shared with the Fortaleza Air Force Base of the Brazilian Air Force.

History

The airport has its origins on a runway built in the 1930s and which was used by the Ceará Flying School until 2000.

During World War II, the airport was an important allied base supporting the Southern Atlantic operations.

On May 13, 1952 the original name, Cocorote Airport, was changed to its present name. In 1966 a passenger terminal and apron were built. Those facilities are now used by general aviation operations.

Since January 7, 1974 the airport is operated by Infraero and in 1997 it was upgraded to international category.

In February 1998 a new passenger terminal was opened.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Avianca Brazil	Bogotá, Brasília, Juazeiro do Norte, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, São Paulo–Congonhas, São Paulo–Guarulhos
Azul Brazilian Airlines	Belém, Belo Horizonte-Confins, Campinas, Goiânia, Imperatriz, João Pessoa, Porto Alegre, Porto Seguro, Recife, Salvador da Bahia, São Luís, Teresina
Condor	Frankfurt
Gol Airlines	Belém, Belo Horizonte-Confins, Brasília, Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Cruzeiro do Sul, Macapá, Manaus, Porto Velho, Recife, Rio Branco, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, Salvador da Bahia, Santarém, São Luís, São Paulo-Congonhas, São Paulo-Guarulhos, Teresina
Meridiana	Milan-Malpensa^1
TACV	Sal
TAM Airlines	Belém, Belo Horizonte-Confins, Brasília, Miami, Natal, Recife, Rio de Janeiro-Galeão, Salvador da Bahia, São Luís, São Paulo-Guarulhos, Teresina
TAP Portugal	Lisbon

Note:

• ^1 Meridiana's flight from Fortaleza to Milan makes a stop in Natal. However, the airline does not have traffic rights to transport passengers solely between Fortaleza and Natal.

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
TAM Cargo (ABSA)	Guayaquil, Manaus, Medellín, Miami, Recife, São Paulo-Guarulhos, Panama City, Quito
Total Linhas Aéreas	Belo Horizonte-Confins, Salvador da Bahia, São Paulo-Guarulhos

Accidents and incidents

• June 8, 1982: a VASP Boeing 727–212 registration PP-SRK operating flight 168 from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão to Fortaleza collided with a mountain while on approach to Fortaleza. The captain descended below a minimum descent altitude. All 137 passengers and crew died.^[4][5]
• October 21, 1998: an Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia, registration PT-WKH, crashed on short finals to runway 13. The aircraft was arriving from Teresina, carrying medical supplies. Three people on board were killed, and one woman on the ground was also killed.

Access

The airport is located 6 km (4 mi) south of downtown Fortaleza.

Future developments

On August 31, 2009, Infraero unveiled a BRL525 million (USD276.6 million; EUR193.8 million) investiment plan to up-grade Pinto Martins International Airport focusing on the preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup which will be held in Brazil, Fortaleza being one of the venue cities. The investiment will be distributed in the renovation and enlargement of passenger terminal, apron, and parking with completion due in November 2013.^[6]

See also

• List of airports in Brazil
• Fortaleza Air Force Base

References

1. "Movimento operacional da rede Infraero de janeiro a dezembro de 2013" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Infraero. 4 February 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
2. "Airport Official Website" (in Portuguese). Infraero.
3. "Lista de aeródromos públicos" (in Portuguese). ANAC.
4. "Accident description PP-SRK". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved August 12, 2011.
5. Germano da Silva, Carlos Ari César (2008). "VASP 168". O rastro da bruxa: história da aviação comercial brasileira no século XX através dos seus acidentes 1928–1996 (in Portuguese) (2 ed.). Porto Alegre: EDIPUCRS. pp. 318–326. ISBN 978-85-7430-760-2.
6. Rittner, Daniel; Braga, Paulo Victor (August 31, 2009). "Infraero vai gastar R$5 bi em reforma de aeroportos". Valor Econômico (in Portuguese). pp. A4.

External links

• Airport information for SBFZ at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.Source: DAFIF.
• Airport information for SBFZ at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
• Current weather for SBFZ at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for FOR at Aviation Safety Network
• Pinto Martins International Airport Photo Archive at airliners.net

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