Quatro de Fevereiro International Airport (Portuguese: Aeroporto Internacional 4 de Fevereiro, Swahili: Uwanja wa Ndege wa Kimataifa wa Quatro de Fevereiro), (IATA: LAD, ICAO: FNLU) is the main international airport of Angola. It is located in the southern part of the capital Luanda, situated in the Luanda Province. Quatro de Fevereiro means 4th of February, which is an important national holiday in Angola, marking the start of the armed struggle against the Portuguese colonial regime on 4 February 1961. In 2009, about 1.8 million passengers were counted.
History
The construction of the airport began in 1951, in order to serve the capital of the former-Portuguese Overseas Province of Angola. It was inaugurated in 1954, by the Portuguese President Craveiro Lopes, which in his honor, the airport was named Aeroporto Presidente Craveiro Lopes (President Craveiro Lopes Airport).
In August, September, and October 1975 the airport hosted tens of thousands of mostly white Portuguese Angolans fleeing to Lisbon (during Operation Air Bridge) who camped-out while awaiting evacuation flights during the weeks before Angola’s Independence.
Following Angola’s independence from Portugal (in November 1975), the airport was renamed Aeroporto Quatro de Fevereiro Internacional (Fourth of February International Airport) to commemorate the events leading to the independence of the state.
Facilities
The airport is at an elevation of 243 feet (74 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt paved runways: 05/23 is 3,716 by 45 metres (12,192 ft × 148 ft) and 07/25 is 2,600 by 60 metres (8,530 ft × 197 ft). Starting no earlier than 2022, the airport will be replaced by the new Angola International Airport. Construction work has already started, but its opening was postponed due to financial difficulties on the part of the Angolan government.
Make sure to check out our social media to keep track of the latest content.
Instagram - @nyongesasande
Twitter - @nyongesasande
Facebook - Nyongesa Sande
YouTube - @nyongesasande
Disclaimer: The information that Nyongesasande.com provides on this website is obtained from publicly available resources and is intended for information or educational purposes only. We aim to present the most accurate information possible. Through this website, you might link to other websites which are not under our control. We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those websites. Inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorsement of the views expressed within them. All content on this website is copyright to the website’s owner and all rights are reserved. We take no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control. Please refer to our terms and conditions and privacy policy before using this website.