Simón Bolívar International Airport (Simón Bolívar International Airport)
Maiquetía "Simón Bolívar" International Airport (, Aeropuerto Internacional de Maiquetía "Simón Bolívar") is an international airport located in Maiquetía, Vargas, Venezuela, about 21 km west of downtown Caracas, the capital of the country. Simply called Maiquetía by the local population, it is the main international air passenger gateway to Venezuela. It handles flights to destinations in the Americas, Europe and the Middle East.
The airport opened in 1945 as the Aeropuerto Internacional de Maiquetía. The site had been recommended as an appropriate location for an airport by Charles Lindbergh on behalf of Pan Am. The USA subsidised the construction of the airport as part of the Airport Development Program. Luis Malaussena was the architect who designed the original passenger terminal.
It was regularly visited by the Anglo-French supersonic airliner Concorde until the 1980s. Commencing in the late 1970s, Air France operated weekly Concorde service between Caracas and Paris via a stop at Santa Maria Airport located in the Atlantic Ocean.
Between 1952 and 1962, two new wings were added to the passenger terminal, and the runway was expanded to 2000 m. Lighting was installed on the runway and approach zones to allow night operations. In 1956 a new runway was built, and in 1962, it was expanded to 3000 m long by 60 m wide.
In the 1970s a new international terminal was constructed to offer increased capacity with a domestic terminal opening in 1983. Since 2000, the airport has been undergoing major changes in order to meet international standards and to improve passenger traffic, security, immigration areas, and customs areas. Security measures have become top priority since the September 11, 2001 attacks, and now departure areas and arrival areas are completely split into the lower and upper levels of the airport. The Proyecto Maiquetía 2000 (Project Maiquetia 2000) was completed in 2007 which added new customs and immigration areas, a new cargo terminal, and a connecting passageway between the domestic and international terminal.
As part of an expansion plan, new international gates are currently in construction, and a section of the parking area has been cleared to build an airport hotel. In the 1950s under the regime of Marcos Pérez Jiménez, road transport between the airport and the capital was improved by the inauguration of the Caracas-La Guaira highway. However, the La Guaira and Caracas Railway, dating from the nineteenth century, was closed. In May 2007 a maglev train was proposed to link Caracas to La Guaira and Simón Bolívar International Airport. In light of the crisis in Venezuela since 2010, the maglev train is not expected to be operational soon. In 2016, the old jetways in the international terminal were replaced with new glass-walled jetways.
The airport opened in 1945 as the Aeropuerto Internacional de Maiquetía. The site had been recommended as an appropriate location for an airport by Charles Lindbergh on behalf of Pan Am. The USA subsidised the construction of the airport as part of the Airport Development Program. Luis Malaussena was the architect who designed the original passenger terminal.
It was regularly visited by the Anglo-French supersonic airliner Concorde until the 1980s. Commencing in the late 1970s, Air France operated weekly Concorde service between Caracas and Paris via a stop at Santa Maria Airport located in the Atlantic Ocean.
Between 1952 and 1962, two new wings were added to the passenger terminal, and the runway was expanded to 2000 m. Lighting was installed on the runway and approach zones to allow night operations. In 1956 a new runway was built, and in 1962, it was expanded to 3000 m long by 60 m wide.
In the 1970s a new international terminal was constructed to offer increased capacity with a domestic terminal opening in 1983. Since 2000, the airport has been undergoing major changes in order to meet international standards and to improve passenger traffic, security, immigration areas, and customs areas. Security measures have become top priority since the September 11, 2001 attacks, and now departure areas and arrival areas are completely split into the lower and upper levels of the airport. The Proyecto Maiquetía 2000 (Project Maiquetia 2000) was completed in 2007 which added new customs and immigration areas, a new cargo terminal, and a connecting passageway between the domestic and international terminal.
As part of an expansion plan, new international gates are currently in construction, and a section of the parking area has been cleared to build an airport hotel. In the 1950s under the regime of Marcos Pérez Jiménez, road transport between the airport and the capital was improved by the inauguration of the Caracas-La Guaira highway. However, the La Guaira and Caracas Railway, dating from the nineteenth century, was closed. In May 2007 a maglev train was proposed to link Caracas to La Guaira and Simón Bolívar International Airport. In light of the crisis in Venezuela since 2010, the maglev train is not expected to be operational soon. In 2016, the old jetways in the international terminal were replaced with new glass-walled jetways.
Map - Simón Bolívar International Airport (Simón Bolívar International Airport)
Map
Country - Venezuela
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| VES | Venezuelan bolÃvar | BsS. or Bs. | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| ES | Spanish language |