The airport originated as theRoyal Air Force airfieldGordon's Tree. By January 1940,No. 223 Squadron RAF was located at Gordon's Tree, in the south of Khartoum.[4] Later the area became known asEl Shajjara ("The Tree").[5] By January 1942, No. 71 Operational Training Unit (OTU) RAF was operating from the airfield; among aircraft operated wereCurtiss Tomahawks andVickers Wellesleys. Reportedly the OTU had at one stage 50 Harvards and 20 Hurricane fighters on strength.[6]
Sudanese independence was granted on 1 January 1956. The last Royal Air Force flying unit reported at Khartoum wasNo. 8 Squadron RAF, which arrived in November 1953, and stayed until July 1956.[7]
The current airport is scheduled to be replaced by theNew Khartoum International Airport inOmdourman 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of the centre of Khartoum. This is planned to have two 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) runways, a passenger terminal of 86,000 m2 (930,000 sq ft) and a 300-room international hotel.[8][9] Construction is to be carried out byChina Harbour Engineering Co. (CHEC).[10] On 4 March 2021, the airport's ICAO code was changed fromHSSS toHSSK.[11]
At the start of theSudanese civil war (2023–present) on 15 April 2023, theRapid Support Forces (RSF) attacked key installations in Khartoum, including Khartoum International Airport. The RSF reportedly fired on aSaudia airliner which was arriving at the airport, but no casualties were reported among the aircraft's passengers and crew.[12][13] However, two civilians were killed in separate incidents in the airport.[14] A total of 20 aircraft were believed to have been destroyed during the fighting.[15] The RSF subsequentlyoccupied the airport, which has been closed to aviation and has been subjected to attacks by theSudanese Armed Forces (SAF) during theBattle of Khartoum.[16] The SAF regained control of the airport on 26 March 2025.[17] The airport reopened for domestic flights on 22 October 2025 whenBadr Airlines resumed flights between Port Sudan and Khartoum.[18]
On 1 January 1942,Vickers Wellesley Mark I L2660 of No. 71 Operational Training Unit RAF was written off, damaged beyond repair, on take-off from Gordon's Tree.[30]
On 27 August 1952,Vickers Viscount G-AHRF operated by theMinistry of Supply (United Kingdom) was damaged beyond economic repair when its starboard undercarriage collapsed on landing.[31]
On 19 July 1983,Douglas C-47A N480F ofChevron Oil crashed shortly after take-off from Khartoum International Airport on a non-scheduled passenger flight. Both engines had failed, probably due to contaminated fuel. All 27 people on board survived.[32]
Sudan Airways Flight 109: On 10 June 2008, an aircraft operating fromAmman,Jordan, landed and went off the end of the runway. The right engine then caught fire and the fire spread rapidly. Preliminary reports stated that around 100 of the 200 passengers had been killed[33] but this was revised to 30 dead with 184 survivors.[34]
On 30 June 2008, anIlyushin Il-76 exploded into a fireball on take-off. All 4 crew were killed.[35]
On 21 October 2025 from 4am to 6am, a drone attack was carried out near the airport, a day before reopening.[39][40]
On 22 October 2025, another drone attack was carried out on the airport.[41] Despite this, the airport reopened later that day for the first time since the start of the civil war.[42]
On 23 October 2025, another drone attack was carried out on the airport.[43]
^Hogg, Ryan (15 April 2023)."Saudia Said Plane Involved in 'Accident' at Sudan's Khartoum Airport".Business Insider. Retrieved17 April 2023.Saudia, formerly called Saudi Arabian Airlines, issued a statement saying one of its Airbus A330 jets was "involved in an accident" at the airport before a flight to Riyadh.... the other plane damaged in the shelling was a Ukraine-based SkyUp 737, operating on behalf of airline Sunwing.
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Media related toKhartoum International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
