Massawa International Airport

Massawa International Airport
Massawa International Airport
	A retired Antonov An-12BP near the Massawa airport's bus terminal.
	IATA: MSW; ICAO: HHMS;
Summary
Airport type	Military/Public
Serves	Massawa
Location	Massawa, Eritrea
Elevation AMSL	206 ft / 63 m
Coordinates	15°41′0″N 39°22′5″E / 15.68333°N 39.36806°E
Map
	MSW Location of airport in Eritrea
Runways

Massawa International Airport (IATA: MSW, ICAO: HHMS) is an airport in Massawa, a major city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea. It is considered to be the successor of the Otumlo Airport, also in Massawa, which was destroyed in 1941.

Overview

The Massawa International Airport is a large establishment. It is one of Eritrea's major airports.^[1]

History

The airport was opened by the Italian authorities in 1935, when the Italian invasion of Ethiopia began, under the name Aeroporto internazionale di Massaua. It was initially used for military aircraft employed in the invasion, and for military transport into conflict areas. In 1936, Ala Littoria, a civilian service with postal service from Massaua toward Asmara and Mogadishu, began operation at the airport.^[2]

In the last colonial period in Italian Eritrea, a 1,970 km airway line was established between Massawa-Djibouti-Berbera-Galadi-Mogadishu.^[3]

After WW2 it was rebuilt at a nearby location and enlarged, under the name of Massawa International Airport.

As of 2014, the airport accommodated only domestic flights since the companies that formed it do not have international licenses.^[1]

The Eritrea Investment Centre has proposed a new $60 million development project at the airport. Additionally, it has offered incentives on taxation, provision of supplies that the market does not already provide, provision of heavy machinery, and easy access to government loans.^[1]