Baghdad International Airport مطار بغداد الدولي Maṭār Baġdād ad-Dawaliyy | |||||||||||||||
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 Baghdad International Airport in August 2025 | |||||||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public / Military | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | Iraqi Government | ||||||||||||||
| Location | Baghdad, Iraq | ||||||||||||||
| Opened | January 1970 (Original)1982 (Current 3 Terminals) | ||||||||||||||
| Hub for | |||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 114 ft / 35 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 33°15′45″N44°14′04″E / 33.26250°N 44.23444°E /33.26250; 44.23444 | ||||||||||||||
| Website | baghdadairport | ||||||||||||||
| Maps | |||||||||||||||
  BGW Location of airport in Iraq | |||||||||||||||
 Interactive map of Baghdad International Airport | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2022) | |||||||||||||||
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| Source: ICAA,[1] COSIT.[2] | |||||||||||||||
Baghdad International Airport (IATA:BGW,ICAO:ORBI) (Arabic:مطار بغداد الدولي,romanized: Maṭār Baġdād ad-Dawaliyy), previously known asSaddam International Airport (IATA:SDA,ICAO:ORBS) is aninternational airport serving Baghdad, the capital of Iraq. It is located in a suburb about 16 km (9.9 mi) west of the downtown in theBaghdad Governorate. Currently, it is the largest and busiest airport in Iraq, with approximately 8 million passengers annually, offering flights to more than 35 destinations.[3]
The construction of today's three terminals began in 1979, under theregime ofSaddam Hussein. However, the inauguration of the airport was delayed during theIran–Iraq War. The airport was opened in 1982. It ceased commercial operations aftersanctions were imposed against Iraq during theGulf War. Only a few planes operated, mainly carrying humanitarian aid. On 17 August 2000, the airport was reopened with commercial flights fromJordan,Syria andLebanon.[4][5] During theinvasion of Iraq in 2003, the airport was scene ofheavy intense fighting between the United-States-led coalition forces and the Iraqi military. The airport fell in control of coalition forces and was closed for renovation. It adopted its current name and resumed operations. Though the airport and its vicinity were subjected to attacks and site of clashes between militants and the U.S. forces.
TheBaghdad West Aerodrome, which would later be known as Al-Muthanna Airport was made available for civilian flights ofImperial Airways on April 1, 1929.[6]
Until 1970, Al Muthanna Airport orMuthenna Air Base was the main airport of Baghdad.[7]
The new airport was to be located 10 and a half miles southwest of the Al Muthanna Airport.[8]
Work began on the airport in August 1965 due to the older Baghdad West Airport declining in passenger numbers due to its lack of facilities, and the runway (now Runway 15R/33L) and apron had been completed by early 1966. An interim passenger building was to be completed initially, before the construction of a larger airport terminal, and when the new terminal would be completed, the interim terminal would be converted into a cargo terminal. Originally, the airport was supposed to be completed by 1968. The airport cost £15-20 million.[8]
The interim terminal contained a restaurant and 2 floors, airline offices, a combined transit and departure lounge, an arrival lounge, customs’ halls and a large concourse. At ground level, the terminal had an area of 43,000 square feet.[8]
The newer terminal was to have a single pier handling 8 aircraft, and the interim terminal, now a cargo terminal would have 5 extra aircraft parking stands next to it. The airport complex was to have 25 buildings and facilities, such as the main terminal, theIraqi Airways headquarters, the control and communications building, and the cargo terminal once the plan would be fully completed. The control and communications building was to be located 3,300 feet northwest of the terminal. It would be a two-story building with a central tower containing the control room. The HQ of Iraqi Airways was to have 8 floors consisting largely of offices and two single-story units, one of which containing a staff canteen and kitchen while the other having welfare facilities. A massive hangar built for Iraqi Airways would be built, it would be built from reinforced concrete with giant cantilever beams and have an area of 54,000 square feet. It would have multiple workshops and stores together with all the necessary process shops for the maintenance and servicing of modern aircraft. An Iraqi Airways operations wing would also be built as a two story building. Meanwhile, a 3 lane highway was built to access the airport and the entire project was the responsibility of the Iraqi Director-General of Roads and Bridges. All of these facilities would make the airport capable of being one of the best in the Middle East.[8]
Sir Basil Spence designed the never built permanent terminal with 8 gates as a Consultant Architect for the engineering firm Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners.[9]
A Romanian state enterprise, Technoexport, was involved in performing all the main contract work other than the radio installations and the electronics.[8]
The plans for the permanent terminal with 1 pier with 8 aircraft gates was cancelled and shelved, but the original illustrations of both the interim terminal and the terminal are archived. The illustrations were made in 1967. The building would have been a rectangular block with a huge canopy porch and large pyramid-shaped skylights. A distinctive crescent-shaped sculptural motif with square-patterned tiles on its underside was planned for the roof. Spence was interested in adapting ancient forms of Sumerian writing to achieve a texture on the walls of the airport. He wanted the interior to be largely of luxurious marble stone but by 1969 was concerned that due to spiralling costs this might have to be abandoned in favour of local materials.[9]
Contrary to popular belief, in January 1970, the airport opened as Baghdad International Airport with one 10,827 foot concrete runway (now 15R/33L).[10]
The airport handled 26 airlines in 1978 and was the main base ofIraqi Airways, the IATA code was BGW and the ICAO code was ORBB.[10]
The new terminals were developed under a consortium led byFrench companySpie Batignolles under an agreement made in 1979.[11] TheIran–Iraq War delayed full opening of the new airport terminals until 1982.[11] It was renamed as Saddam International Airport, bearing the name of then-Iraqi PresidentSaddam Hussein.[11]
Closer to Baghdad than the older runway, a new runway, 15L/33R begun construction with a length of 13,123 feet or 4,000 meters.
The access road to the interim terminal was partially demolished so that Runway 15L/33R could be built.
Most ofBaghdad's civilian flights stopped in 1991,[12] when theUnited Nations imposed restrictions on Iraq after itsinvasion of Kuwait. After thePersian Gulf War, ano-fly zone imposed on Iraq by theUnited States and theUnited Kingdom meant thatIraqi Airways was only able to continue domestic flights for limited periods.[citation needed] Occasional international charter flights carrying medicine, aid workers, and government officials were allowed into Baghdad.[13]Royal Jordanian Airlines operated regular flights fromAmman to Baghdad.[citation needed]
On August 17, 2000, the airport was officially opened to civilian flights. Minister of Transport Ahmad Murtada said that:
And we are expecting the arrival of aircraft. The embargo has prevented Iraqi citizens from using the airport for 10 years. There is no international resolution banning flights to Iraq. It is a US-British-Zionist decision that is neither lawful, humane nor fair.
— Ahmed Murtada
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In 2003,United States-led Coalition forcesinvaded Iraq. In early April, they moved into Baghdad, took control of the airport, and changed its name to the original name of the airport, Baghdad International Airport.[14] TheICAO code for the airport consequently changed from ORBS to ORBI. TheIATA code also changed from SDA to BGW, which had previously referred to all Baghdad airports, and before that toAl Muthana Airport when Saddam Hussein was in power.
In July 2003, the airport resumed civilian flights for the first time since 1991.[12]
Civilian control of the airport was returned to theIraqi Government from theCoalition Provisional Authority in 2004.[citation needed]
Sather Air Base – the American base on the west side of the airport – came under periodic rocket fire from Baghdad. On 6 December 2006, a 107mm rocket attack landed 30 yards (27 meters) from a parkedC-5A aircraft, puncturing it with scores of shrapnel holes.[citation needed]
Terminal C was refreshed with three active gate areas for carriers operating from the airport.[citation needed]
Baghdad Airport Road, connecting the airport to theGreen Zone, once a dangerous route full ofIEDs, was refurbished in 2014 with palm trees, manicured lawns, and a fountain, withTurkish assistance.[15]
Since the end of the war, the region surrounding the airport alongside the Airport Road, has emerged as an investment destination in Baghdad.
On 1 May 2023, the Iraqi government underMohammed Shia' Al Sudani approved plans to enhance services with the intention of launching an expansion project in the development of Baghdad Airport in the second half of 2023. In 2024, the airport reached the final stage of its expansion plan, according to theInternational Finance Corporation.
A separate enclave within the airport houses theNew Al Muthana Air Base, where theIraqi Air Force's23rd Squadron is based, operating threeLockheed C-130E Hercules transport aircraft. The base is also home to a number ofSukhoi Su-25 attack aircraft.[16]
Sather Air Base, or Camp Sather, was aUnited States Air Forcebase on the west side of the airport from 2003 to 2011. It was named in memory ofCombat ControllerStaff Sergeant Scott Sather, the first enlistedairman to die inOperation Iraqi Freedom. Sather was awarded theBronze Star Medalwith Valor for his leadership of a24th Special Tactics Squadron reconnaissance task force during the initial stages of the 2003 U.S. invasion.[17]
On 18 May 2010, plans were unveiled for an expansion of Baghdad International Airport, doubling its capacity to 15 million passengers per year. The expansion, to be funded by foreign investors, was to include construction of three new terminals and refurbishment of the existing three, each of which would accommodate 2.5 million passengers annually.[18]
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Coyne Airways | Dubai–International[41] |
| EgyptAir Cargo | Cairo[42] |
| Silk Way Airlines | Baku[43] |
| DHL Aviation | Bahrain[44] |
| Year | Passengers | Cargo | Aircraft operations | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | %YoY | Tons | %YoY | Movements | %YoY | |
| 2015 | 1,898,589 | N.D. | 11,657.5 | N.D. | 19,952 | N.D. |
| 2016 | 1,787,247 |  5.9% | 18,903.1 |  62.2% | 16,858 | 15.5% |
| 2017 | 3,507,910 | 96.3% | 33,254.8 | 75.9% | 31,342 | 85.1% |
| 2018 | 3,909,709 | 11.5% | 11,027.0 | 66.8% | 37,751 | 20.4% |
| 2019 | 3,778,578 | 3.5% | 12,057.7 | 9.3% | 37,265 | 1.3% |
| 2020 | 928,876 | 75.4% | 6,105.3 | 49.4% | 11,301 | 69.7% |
| 2021 | 2,071,150 | 123.0% | 7,346.7 | 20.3% | 23,678 | 109.5% |
| 2022 | 2,915,052 | 40.7% | 8,803.3 | 19.8% | 32,549 | 37.5% |
Source:COSIT. Air Transport Activity Statistics, years 2015,[45] 2016,[46] 2017,[47] 2018,[48] 2019,[49] 2020,[50] 2021[51] and 2022.[52]
Historical Statistics from “Airports of the World”.[10]
| Year | Passengers (Terminal) | Cargo (tonnes) | Transport Movements |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 200,998 | 3,457 | 6,402 |
| 1975 | 605,052 | 17,750 | 10,674 |
| 1976 | 822,951 | 14,124 | 14,739 |
| 1977 | 1,007,000* | 15,568 | 14,505 |
*Rounded figure
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