Airport serving Praia, Cape Verde
Nelson Mandela International Airport (IATA :RAI ,ICAO :GVNP Praia International Airport , is aninternational airport ofSantiago Island inCape Verde . It was opened in October 2005,[ 3] Francisco Mendes International Airport . It is located about 3 km (1.9 mi) northeast of the city centre ofPraia in the southeastern part of the island of Santiago.
The first flight to the new airport was on 6 October 2005 with a flight fromSal, Cape Verde .[ 3] Amílcar Cabral International Airport located on the smaller island of Sal.[ 2]
In January 2012 a Cape Verde government statement noted that Praia International Airport was renamed afterNelson Mandela , the firstpresident of South Africa .[ 4] [ 5]
In July 2023Vinci Airports finalized a financial arrangement to take over seven airports in Cape Verde under a concession agreement signed with the island country’s government. The company will be responsible for the funding, operation, maintenance, extension and modernization of the airports for 40 years, alongside its subsidiary ANA-Aeroportos de Portugal, which holds 30% of the concession company Cabo Verde Airports.[ 1]
Airlines and destinations [ edit ] The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Praia Airport:
Airlines Destinations Air Senegal Dakar–Diass [ 6] [ 7] ASKY Airlines Dakar–Diass ,Lomé [ 8] [ 9] Azores Airlines Ponta Delgada [ 10] Cabo Verde Airlines [ 11] Boa Vista ,Lisbon ,[ 12] Maio ,Paris–Charles de Gaulle ,[ 12] [ 13] Sal ,São Filipe ,São Nicolau ,São Vicente easyJet Lisbon ,[ 14] Porto [ 14] Edelweiss Air Seasonal: Zurich [ 15] Luxair Seasonal: Luxembourg [ 16] Royal Air Maroc Bissau ,Casablanca [ 17] TAP Air Portugal Lisbon [ 18] Transair Dakar–Diass [ 19] Transavia Seasonal: Lyon ,[ 20] Marseille ,[ 20] Paris–Orly [ 21]
Year Passengers Operations Cargo (t) 2012[ 22] 497,049 2013[ 22] 505,497 8,978 1,418 2016[ 2] 522,584 8,641 1,109 2017[ 2] 662,356 11,236 959
^a b "VINCI Takes Over Seven Cape Verde Airports" .aviationweek.com . 25 July 2023. Retrieved5 February 2024 .^a b c d e f "Boletim Estatístico de Tráfego – Ano 2017" (PDF) (in Portuguese). ASA. January 2018. Archived fromthe original (PDF) on 23 September 2020. Retrieved3 September 2018 .^a b "Novo Aeroporto: Primeiro voo intercontinental chega hoje à Praia" [New Airport: First Intercontinental Flight Arrives in Praia].A Semana (in Portuguese). 23 October 2005. Archived fromthe original on 8 March 2017.^ "Cape Verde Names Airport After Nelson Mandela" . All Africa.com. Retrieved31 December 2013 .^ "Obras de expansão e modernização do Aeroporto da Praia consomem mais 35 por cento dos 29 milhões de euros previstos" (in Portuguese).Inforpress . 18 December 2017. Archived fromthe original on 5 November 2018. Retrieved7 October 2018 .^ "Air Senegal outlines proposed regional network from late-Sep 2018" .routesonline.com . Retrieved26 September 2018 .^ Liu, Jim (20 June 2023)."Air Senegal Resumes Ilha do Sal Service From July 2023" .Aeroroutes.com . Retrieved14 October 2024 . ^ "Lome, Togo LFW".OAG Flight Guide Worldwide .26 (11). Luton, United Kingdom:OAG Aviation Worldwide Limited :609– 609. May 2025.ISSN 1466-8718 .OCLC 41608313 . ^ "Asky Airlines adds Cape Verde service from April 2020" .^ Liu, Jim (14 November 2023)."Azores Airlines NS24 Ponta Delgada Service Expansion – 13NOV23" .Aeroroutes.com . Retrieved27 December 2024 . ^ "Flight Schedule" .caboverdeairlines.com .^a b Liu, Jim (24 July 2023)."Cabo Verde Airlines Outlines 737 MAX 8 Service From late-July 2023" .Aeroroutes.com . Retrieved3 February 2025 . ^ "CABO VERDE AIRLINES VAI RETOMAR VOOS PARA PARIS" . 29 April 2023.^a b Liu, Jim (4 July 2025)."EASYJET FURTHER EXPANDS CAPE VERDE NETWORK IN NW25" .Aeroroutes.com . ^ "Edelweiss Air NW25 Short-Haul Network Additions" .Aeroroutes . Retrieved19 June 2025 .^ "Luxair aumenta número de voos semanais para as ilhas de Cabo Verde" . 29 May 2023.^ "Casablanca".OAG Flight Guide Worldwide .25 (5). Luton, United Kingdom: OAG Aviation Worldwide Limited:194– 195. November 2023.ISSN 1466-8718 . ^ Liu, Jim (18 December 2023)."Etihad / TAP Air Portugal Resumes Codeshare Partnership From mid-Dec 2023" .Aeroroutes.com . Retrieved27 December 2024 . ^ Gaye, Alex (19 July 2016)."Vol inaugural Dakar-Praia : Transair relève le défi" .au-senegal.com . ^a b "Transavia France NW25 Cabo Verde Network Expansion" .Aeroroutes . Retrieved17 April 2025 .^ Liu, Jim (24 July 2023)."Transavia France NW23 North/West Africa Network Expansion – 23JUL23" .Aeroroutes.com . Retrieved3 January 2025 . ^a b "Statistics in Airports" (PDF) (in Portuguese). ASA. 1 October 2013. Retrieved17 September 2014 .[permanent dead link Praia International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
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