Seychelles International Airport Aéroport de la Pointe Larue | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public / military | ||||||||||
| Owner | Government of Seychelles | ||||||||||
| Operator | Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority | ||||||||||
| Serves | Victoria, Seychelles | ||||||||||
| Hub for | Air Seychelles | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 12 ft / 4 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 4°40′28″S55°31′19″E / 4.6743444444444°S 55.521852777778°E /-4.6743444444444; 55.521852777778 | ||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  SEZ Location of airport in Seychelles | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2013) | |||||||||||
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| Sources: WAD,[1] Google Maps,[2] National Bureau of Statistics,[3] SkyVector[4] | |||||||||||
Seychelles International Airport (French:Aéroport de la Pointe Larue;IATA:SEZ,ICAO:FSIA) is theinternational airport of theSeychelles located on the island ofMahé near the capital city ofVictoria. The airport is the home base and the head office ofAir Seychelles[5] and features several regional and long-haul routes due to its importance as the gateway to a major international leisure destination.
The airport is 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southeast of the capital and is accessible by the Victoria-Providence Highway. It forms part of the administrative districts of La Pointe Larue (terminal area), Cascade/Providence (in the North), and Anse aux Pins (in the south and military base).
The domestic terminal is a short distance north of the international terminal and offers inter-island flights with a peak of a departure every 10–15 minutes at busy times which corresponds with international arrivals/departures and every 30 minutes at other times.[6]A cargo terminal is south of the international terminal and handles freight from all international and domestic movements; it is run byAir Seychelles.[citation needed]
A base of theSeychelles Public Defence Force (SPDF) is at the southeastern end of Runway 13 on an island that was joined with Mahé at the construction of the airport.[citation needed]
There is frequent service to the bus station in Victoria, with taxi ranks outside the terminal available to all locations on Mahé Island. Several tour operators' coach services also link passengers to the ferry terminal at the Old Port (Vieux Port) for inter-island ferry services and to the New Port (Nouveau port) for cruise holidays.
The opening of the Seychelles International Airport took place on 20 March 1972 byQueen Elizabeth II. Wilkenair ofKenya had, however, already started a ferry service betweenMombasa andMahé viaDiego Suarez in Madagascar andAstove Island (Seychelles) using a twin enginePiper Navajo the previous year.[7] It operated to the Seychelles once a week. The first pilot to land at Seychelles airport was Tony Bentley-Buckle, who flew his private plane from Mombasa to Mahe via Moroni in March 1971 even before the airfield was complete.[8] The flying time was 9 hours 35 minutes.
This was followed byEast African Airways in November 1971 andLuxair in December of the same year. ABOACSuper VC10 was the first jet aircraft to land at Seychelles International Airport on 4 July 1971.[7] At the time of the opening it had a 2987 m runway and a control tower. Ground handling and all other airport operations were carried out by the DCA (Directorate of Civil Aviation).
In 1972, John Faulkner Taylor and Tony Bentley-Buckle founded the first local aircraft company Air Mahé, which operated aPiper PA-34 Seneca betweenPraslin,Fregate, and Mahé Islands. This aircraft was later replaced by aBritten-Norman Islander. By 1974, over 30 airlines were flying to the Seychelles. Ground handling and all airport operations were being carried out by Aviation Seychelles Company, a company formed in 1973.[7]
Construction works for the substantial expansion of the airport started in July 1980.[7] Due to the continuous increase in passenger traffic, a terminal building was built that could cater for 400 more arriving and 400 more departing passengers at any time. Parking bays for up to six large aircraft were built and a parking area for five light aircraft.[9]
In 1981, there was a gun battle at Seychelles International Airport, as British nationalMike Hoare led a team of 43 South African mercenaries masquerading as holidaying rugby players in a coup attempt in what is known as theSeychelles affair. After their hidden weapons were discovered on arrival a skirmish ensued, with most of the mercenaries later escaping in a hijackedAir India jet.[10]
The years 2005 and 2006 brought further development of civil aviation in the Seychelles. The Civil Aviation Authority Act was enacted on 4 April 2006 for the corporatisation of the Directorate of Civil Aviation toSeychelles Civil Aviation Authority.[citation needed] Works started to upgrade and extend the terminal building, which has been further extended to handle at least five medium to large jet aircraft (e.g.,Boeing 767 orAirbus A330) as well as six smaller jet aircraft (e.g.Boeing 737 orAirbus A320).[citation needed]
Additional parking areas were made available to the north-east of the airport to handle the parking of charter, business, and long stay aircraft (e.g. some European flights arrive in the morning starting at 7 a.m. but do not depart until 10 p.m. onwards).[11] This reducesjet-lag as any flight that leaves Seychelles at night will get to most Western European cities in the early morning and vice versa from the European cities to the Seychelles; it also provides sufficient rest for operating crews.[citation needed]
The airport has been home tounmanned aerial vehicles operated by theUnited States Air Force and possibly theCentral Intelligence Agency for operations overSomalia and theHorn of Africa.President of SeychellesJames Michel apparently welcomedthe presence of US drones in Seychelles to combatSomalian piracy and terrorism, dating back to at least August 2009.[12] At least twoMQ-9 Reaper UAVs have crashed into the Indian Ocean near the airport since December 2011.[13][14][15]
| Year | Passengers | Change | Cargo international (tonnes) | Change | Aircraft movements (international) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014[3] | 736,558 |  1% | 8,124 | 4% | 4,774 |  6% |
| 2013[30] | 726,524 | 17% | 7,807 | 32% | 5,080 | 5% |
| 2012[31] | 623,017 | 8% | 5,943 | 38% | 4,843 | 8% |
| 2011[32] | 674,306 | 9% | 9,613 | 4% | 4,479 | 0% |
| 2010[33] | 618,675 | 12% | 9,242 | 18% | 4,480 | 19% |
| 2009[34] | 554,408 | 12% | 7,829 | 12% | 3,751 | 2% |
| 2008[35] | 628,504 | 9% | 8,880 | 7% | 3,832 | 8% |
| 2007[36] | 690,661 | 12% | 8,300 | 21% | 3,532 | 11% |
| 2006 | 617,348 | 10% | 6,883 | 12% | 3,194 | 7% |
| 2005 | 562,221 | 1% | 6,165 | 37% | 3,446 | 4% |
| 2004 | 554,760 | 3% | 4,515 | 13% | 3,327 | 4% |
| 2003 | 572,512 |  | 5,177 | | 3,204 | |
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