An IATA airport code, also known as an IATA location identifier, IATA station code, or simply a location identifier, is a three-character alphanumeric

geocode A geocode is a code that represents a geographic entity (location or object). It is a unique identifier of the entity, to distinguish it from others in a finite set of geographic entities. In general the ''geocode'' is a human-readable and ...

designating many airports and

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...

s around the world, defined by the

International Air Transport Association The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is a trade association of the world's airlines founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff ...

(IATA). The characters prominently displayed on baggage tags attached at

airport check-in Airport check-in is the process whereby an airline approves airplane passengers to board an airplane for a flight. Airlines typically use service counters found at airports for this process, and the check-in is normally handled by an airline ...

desks are an example of a way these codes are used. The assignment of these codes is governed by IATA Resolution 763, and it is administered by the IATA's headquarters in Montreal, Canada. The codes are published semi-annually in the IATA Airline Coding Directory. IATA provides codes for airport handling entities, and for certain railway stations. Alphabetical lists of airports sorted by IATA code are available. A list of railway station codes, shared in agreements between airlines and rail lines such as Amtrak,

SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (; abbreviated as SNCF ; French for "National society of French railroads") is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffi ...

, and , is available. However, many railway administrations have their own list of codes for their stations, such as the list of Amtrak station codes.

History

Airport codes arose out of the convenience that the practice brought pilots for location identification in the 1930s. Initially, pilots in the United States used the two-letter code from the National Weather Service (NWS) for identifying cities. This system became unmanageable for cities and towns without an NWS identifier, and the use of two letters allowed only a few hundred combinations; a three-letter system of airport codes was implemented. This system allowed for 17,576 permutations, assuming all letters can be used in conjunction with each other.

Naming conventions

National policies

United States

Since the U.S. Navy reserved "N" codes, and to prevent confusion with Federal Communications Commission

broadcast call signs Broadcast call signs are call signs assigned as unique identifiers to radio stations and television stations. While broadcast radio stations will often brand themselves with plain-text names, identities such as "cool FM", "rock 105" or "the ABC n ...

, which begin with "W" or "K", the airports of certain U.S. cities whose names begin with one of these letters had to adopt "irregular" airport codes: EWR for Newark, New Jersey,

ORF ORF or Orf may refer to: * Norfolk International Airport, IATA airport code ORF * Observer Research Foundation, an Indian research institute * One Race Films, a film production company founded by Vin Diesel * Open reading frame, a portion of t ...

for

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, EYW for

Key West, Florida Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Isla ...

, OME for

Nome, Alaska Nome (; ik, Sitŋasuaq, ) is a city in the Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough of Alaska, United States. The city is located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast on Norton Sound of the Bering Sea. It had a population of 3,699 recorded ...

and APC for Napa, California. This practice is not followed outside the United States: Karachi is KHI, Warsaw is WAW, and Nagoya is NGO. In addition, since three letter codes starting with Q are widely used in radio communication, cities with "Q" beginning their name also had to find alternate codes, as in the case of Qiqihar (NDG), Quetta (UET),

Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...

(UIO), and Quimper (UIP). IATA codes should not be confused with the FAA identifiers of US airports. Most FAA identifiers agree with the corresponding IATA codes, but some do not, such as

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

whose FAA identifier is GSN and its IATA code is SPN, and some coincide with IATA codes of non-US airports.

Canada

Canada's unusual codes–which bear little to no similarity with any conventional abbreviation to the city's name–such as YUL in Montréal, and YEG in Edmonton, originated from the two-letter codes used to identify weather reporting stations in the 1930s. The letters preceding the two-letter code follow the following format: * "Y" – Indicating “yes”, this letter was used when the station shared its location with an airport. * "W" – When the weather-reporting station shared its location with no airport, this letter hinted at “Without”. * "U" – This letter was used when the station was located together with an NDB or non-directional beacon. * "X" – Suggesting that the last two letters of a code were in use by a Canadian airport, this letter was put in place. * "Z" – This letter indicated that an airport code had been used for the identification of an airport in the US. Most large airports in Canada have codes that begin with the letter "Y", although not all "Y" codes are Canadian (for example, YUM for Yuma, Arizona, and YNT for Yantai, China), and not all Canadian airports start with the letter "Y" (for example ZBF for Bathurst, New Brunswick). Many Canadian airports have a code that starts with W, X or Z, but none of these are major airports. When the Canadian transcontinental railways were built, each station was assigned its own two-letter Morse code. VR stands for Vancouver, TZ Toronto, QB Quebec, WG Winnipeg, SJ Saint John, YC Calgary, OW Ottawa, EG Edmonton, etc. When the Canadian government established airports, it used the existing railway codes for them as well. If the airport had a weather station, authorities added a "Y" to the front of the code, meaning "Yes" to indicate it had a weather station or some other letter to indicate it did not. When international codes were created in cooperation with the United States, because "Y" was seldom used in the US, Canada simply used the weather station codes for its airports, changing the "Y" to a "Z" if it conflicted with an airport code already in use. The result is that most major Canadian airport codes start with "Y" followed by two letters in the city's name: YOW for

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

YWG Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport (commonly known as Winnipeg International Airport or Winnipeg Airport) is a Transport Canada designated international airport located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is the seventh ...

for Winnipeg,

YYC Calgary International Airport , branded as YYC Calgary International Airport, is an international airport that serves the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is located approximately northeast of downtown and covers an area of 20.82 square ...

for

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, and YVR for Vancouver, whereas other Canadian airports append the two-letter code of the radio beacons that were the closest to the actual airport, such as YQX in Gander and YXS in Prince George. Four of the ten provincial capital airports in Canada have ended up with codes beginning with YY, including YYZ for Toronto, Ontario, YYJ for Victoria, British Columbia, YYT for St. John's, Newfoundland, and YYG for Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Canada's largest airport is YYZ for

Toronto–Pearson Lester B. Pearson International Airport , commonly known as Toronto Pearson International Airport, is an international airport located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It is the main airport serving Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the surro ...

(As YTZ was already allocated to Toronto City Airport, the airport was given the station code of Malton, Mississauga, where it is located.) YUL is used for Montréal–Trudeau (UL was the ID code for beacon in the city of Kirkland, now the location of Montréal–Trudeau). While these codes make it difficult for the public to associate them with a particular Canadian city, some codes have become popular in usage despite their cryptic nature, particularly at the largest airports. Toronto's code has entered pop culture in the form of "YYZ", a song by the rock band

Rush Rush(es) may refer to: Places United States * Rush, Colorado * Rush, Kentucky * Rush, New York * Rush City, Minnesota * Rush Creek (Kishwaukee River tributary), Illinois * Rush Creek (Marin County, California), a stream * Rush Creek (Mono Cou ...

which utilizes the Morse code signal as a musical motif. Some airports have started using their IATA codes as brand names, such as Calgary International Airport (YYC) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR).

New Zealand

Numerous New Zealand airports use codes that contain the letter Z, to distinguish them from similar airport names in other countries. Examples include HLZ for Hamilton, ZQN for Queenstown, and WSZ for Westport.

Naming conventions in general

Predominantly, airport codes are named after the first three letters of the city in which it is located—

ATL ATL may refer to: Places * Atlanta, a city in the U.S. state of Georgia ** Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport (IATA airport code) ** Peachtree station (Amtrak station code) * Attleborough railway station, located in Norfolk, Engl ...

for Atlanta, IND for

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, ASU for Asunción,

MEX MEX or Mex may refer to: Places * Mexico, a country in the southern portion of North America ** State of Mexico ** Mexico City ** Mexico City International Airport, IATA airport code MEX * Mex, Valais, Switzerland * Mex, Vaud, Switzerland * Mexbor ...

for Mexico City, DEN for Denver, IST for Istanbul; or a combination of the letters in its name, ALA for

Almaty Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to ...

(formerly known as Alma-Ata), ORK for Cork, EWR for Newark, GDL for

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

, JNB for Johannesburg, HKG for Hong Kong,

SLC SLC may refer to: Places * Salt Lake City, Utah * Salt Lake City International Airport, IATA Airport Code Education * Sarah Lawrence College, NY * School Leaving Certificate (Nepal) * St. Lawrence College, Ontario, Canada * Small Learning C ...

for Salt Lake City and WAW for Warsaw. Some airports in the United States retained their NWS codes and simply appended an X at the end, such as LAX for Los Angeles, PDX for

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, and

PHX Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a civil–military public airport east of downtown Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. It is Arizona's largest and busiest airport, and among the largest commercial airports in th ...

for Phoenix. Sometimes the airport code reflects pronunciation, rather than spelling, such as NAN, which reflects the pronunciation of "Nadi" as in Fijian, where "d" is realized as the

prenasalized stop Prenasalized consonants are phonetic sequences of a nasal and an obstruent (or occasionally a non-nasal sonorant such as ) that behave phonologically like single consonants. The primary reason for considering them to be single consonants, rather ...

. For many reasons, some airport codes do not fit the normal scheme described above. Some airports, for example, cross several municipalities or regions, and therefore, use codes derived from some of their letters, resulting in DFW for D allas/Fort Worth, DTW for D etroit–Wayne County, LBA for L eeds–Bradford (Airport), MSP for M inneapolis–Saint Paul, and RDU for R aleigh–DUrham. Other airports—particularly those serving cities with multiple airports—have codes derived from the name of the airport itself, such as JFK for New York's John F. Kennedy or CDG for Paris' Charles de Gaulle (see below). In some cases, the code comes from the airport's unofficial name, such as Kahului Airport's OGG (for local aviation pioneer Jimmy Hogg).

Cities with multiple commercial airports

In large metropolitan areas, airport codes are often named after the airport itself instead of the city it serves, while another code is reserved which refers to the city itself which can be used to search for flights to any of its airports. For instance: * Beijing (BJS) –

Capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

(PEK) and Daxing (PKX). *

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte (, ; ) is the sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population around 2.7 million and with a metropolitan area of 6 million people. It is the 13th-largest city in South America and the 18th-largest in the Americas. The metropol ...

(BHZ) – Confins (CNF) and Pampulha (PLU). * Bucharest (BUH) – Otopeni (OTP) is named after the town of Otopeni where the airport is located, while the city also has a business airport inside the city limits named

Băneasa Băneasa () is a borough () in the north side of Bucharest, in Sector 1, near the Băneasa Lake (). Like all north-side districts of Bucharest, it is relatively sparsely populated, with large areas of parkland. Bordering on Băneasa Forest, ...

(BBU). * Buenos Aires (BUE) – Ezeiza (EZE) is named after the suburb in Ezeiza Partido where the airport is located, while Aeroparque Jorge Newbery (AEP) is in the city proper. * Chicago (CHI) – O'Hare (ORD), named after Orchard Field, the airport's former name, Midway (MDW), and Rockford (RFD) *

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

(JKT) – Soekarno–Hatta (CGK) is named after Cengkareng, the district in which the airport is located, while the city also has another airport, Halim Perdanakusuma (HLP). JKT used to refer to the city's former airport, Kemayoran Airport, which closed down in the mid-1980s. * London (LON) – Heathrow (LHR), Gatwick (LGW),

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

(LCY), Stansted (STN), Luton (LTN) and Southend (SEN) * Milan (MIL) – Malpensa (MXP),

Linate Milan Linate Airport is the third international airport of Milan, the second-largest city and largest urban area of Italy, behind Malpensa Airport and Orio al Serio International Airport, Orio al Serio Airport. It served 9,233,475 passengers i ...

(LIN) and

Orio al Serio Orio al Serio (Bergamasque: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Bergamo in the Italian region of Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about southeast of Bergamo. Orio al Serio Airport is located in the territory of the ...

(BGY) * Montreal (YMQ) – Trudeau (YUL), Mirabel (YMX), and Saint-Hubert (YHU) * Moscow (MOW) –

Sheremetyevo Sheremetyevo Alexander S. Pushkin International Airport ( rus, links=no, Международный аэропорт Шереметьево имени А. С. Пушкина, p=ʂɨrʲɪˈmʲetʲjɪvə ''Mezhdunarodny aeroport Sheremetyevo imen ...

(SVO), Domodedovo (DME), Vnukovo (VKO), Ostafyevo (OSF), Zhukovsky (ZIA) * New York City (NYC) – John F. Kennedy (JFK, formerly Idlewild (IDL)), LaGuardia (LGA), and Newark (EWR) * Osaka (OSA) –

Itami 270px, Gogadzuka Kofun 270px, Aerial view of Itami city center 270px, Konoike inari shihi 270px, Arioka Castle ruins ) is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 197,215 in 83580 households and a ...

(ITM, formerly OSA),

Kansai The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshu, Honshū. The region includes the Prefectures of Japan, prefectures of Nara Prefecture, Nara, Wakayama Prefecture, Wakayama, Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto, Osaka Prefectur ...

(KIX), and

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

(UKB) * Paris (PAR) – Orly (ORY),

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

(CDG), Le Bourget (LBG) and

Beauvais Beauvais ( , ; pcd, Bieuvais) is a city and commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise département, in the Hauts-de-France region, north of Paris. The commune of Beauvais had a population of 56,020 , making it the most populous ...

(BVA) * Rio de Janeiro (RIO) – Galeão (GIG) and

Santos Dumont Alberto Santos-Dumont ( Palmira, 20 July 1873 — Guarujá, 23 July 1932) was a Brazilian aeronaut, sportsman, inventor, and one of the few people to have contributed significantly to the early development of both lighter-than-air and heavier- ...

(SDU) * Rome (ROM) – Fiumicino (FCO) and

Ciampino Ciampino () is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Lazio, Italy. It was a ''frazione'' of Marino until 1974, when it became a ''comune''; it obtained the city ( it, città) status (being therefore officially known as Citt� ...

(CIA) * São Paulo (SAO) – Congonhas (CGH),

Guarulhos Guarulhos () is a Brazilian municipality. It is the second most populous city in the Brazilian state of São Paulo, the 13th most populous city in Brazil, and is also the most populous city in the country that is not a state capital. In the last ...

(GRU) and Campinas (VCP) * Sapporo (SPK) – Chitose (CTS) and Okadama (OKD) * Seoul (SEL) –

Incheon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...

(ICN) and

Gimpo Gimpo () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. It borders Incheon, with which it shares the South Korean side of the Han River estuary, as well as Seoul and the lesser cities of Paju and Goyang. North Korea is across the Han River. The cu ...

(GMP, formerly SEL) *

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

(STO) – Arlanda (ARN),

Bromma Bromma () is a borough (''stadsdelsområde'') in the western part of Stockholm, Sweden, forming part of the Stockholm Municipality. Bromma is primarily made up of Bromma Parish and Västerled Parish. The fourth largest airport in Sweden and the th ...

(BMA), Nyköping–Skavsta (NYO) and Västerås (VST) * Tenerife (TCI) – Tenerife North (TFN) and Tenerife South (TFS) * Tokyo (TYO) – Haneda (HND, formerly TYO) and Narita (NRT) * Toronto (YTO) – Pearson (YYZ), Bishop (YTZ), Hamilton (YHM), and

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, a battle on 18 June 1815 in which Napoleon met his final defeat * Waterloo, Belgium, where the battle took place. Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Antarctica *King George Island (S ...

(YKF) * Washington, D.C. (WAS) – Dulles (IAD),

Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

(DCA), and Baltimore–Washington (BWI) Or using a code for the city in one of the major airports and then assigning another code to another airport: *

(ALA) – Self-named (ALA) and

Burundai Boroldai (or Burulday, Borolday), also known as Burundai, (Cyrillic: ''Боролдай'') (died 1262) was a notable Mongol general of the mid 13th century. He participated in the Mongol invasion of Russia and Europe in 1236-1242. The clan of Borol ...

(BXJ) * Bangkok (BKK) – Suvarnabhumi (BKK) and Don Mueang (DMK, formerly BKK) * Belfast (BFS) – International (BFS) and George Best (BHD) * Berlin (BER) – Self-named (BER). The city also previously had three airports, Tempelhof (THF), Schönefeld (SXF) and Tegel (TXL), with THF and TXL both now closed. The former Berlin Schönefeld Airport was absorbed into Berlin Brandenburg Airport, with the old Schönefeld terminal becoming ''Terminal 5''. *

Chengdu Chengdu (, ; Simplified Chinese characters, simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively Romanization of Chi ...

(CTU) –

Shuangliu Shuangliu District () is one of 11 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, Southwest China. The district covers an area of , and has a population of approximately 1,396,400 as of 2019. It is th ...

(CTU), Tianfu (TFU), and Huaizhou (HZU). * Colombo (CMB) –

Bandaranaike Bandaranaike or Bandaranayake ( si, බණ්ඩාරනායක, translit=Baṇḍāranāyaka) is a Sinhalese surname. Notable people * Anura Bandaranaike (1949–2008), Sri Lankan politician * Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (born 1945), S ...

(CMB) and Ratmalana (RML) * Dakar (DKR) – Senghor (DKR) and

Diass Ndiass is a village and rural community in the M'bour Department in the Thies Region of Senegal. It is located southeast of Dakar. According to PEPAM (Programme d'eau potable et d'assainissement du Millénaire), Ndiass has a population of 4794. ...

(DSS) * Dallas–Fort Worth (DFW) – Self-named (DFW), Love Field (DAL),

Meacham Meacham is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Bob Meacham, former Major League Baseball player *Doug Meacham, American football coach * Ellis K. Meacham (1913–1998), author and jurist *F. W. Meacham (1856–1909), American compo ...

(FTW), Alliance (AFW), Addison (ADS) * Dubai (DXB) – Self-named (DXB) and Al Maktoum (DWC) * Glasgow (GLA) – International (GLA) and Prestwick (PIK) * Houston (HOU) - Hobby (HOU), Intercontinental (IAH) and

Ellington Ellington may refer to: Places United Kingdom *Ellington, Cambridgeshire * Ellington, Northumberland *Ellington High and Low, a civil parish in North Yorkshire **High Ellington **Low Ellington United States *Ellington Airport (Texas), Hous ...

(EFD) * Istanbul (IST) – Self-named (IST), Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) and Atatürk (ISL, formerly IST) * Johannesburg (JNB) – O. R. Tambo (formerly Jan Smuts) (JNB) and Lanseria (HLA) * Kuala Lumpur (KUL) –

Sepang Pekan Sepang is a small border town and also a mukim in Sepang District, Selangor, Malaysia. The Sepang International Circuit in the western part of the town, where the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix was and Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix is held. Mal ...

(KUL) and Subang (SZB, formerly KUL) * Kyiv (IEV) –

Zhuliany Zhuliany ( uk , Жуляни) is a neighbourhood in the south-west of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is a predominantly cottage-built area, part of the Solomianskyi district. As well as Troieshchyna, Zhuliany became a part of Kyiv municipality ...

(IEV) and Boryspil (KBP) * Los Angeles (LAX) – Self-named (LAX), San Bernardino (SBD), Ontario (ONT), Orange County (SNA),

Van Nuys Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1909, t ...

(VNY), Palmdale (PMD), Long Beach (LGB) and

Burbank Burbank may refer to: Places Australia * Burbank, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane United States * Burbank, California, a city in Los Angeles County * Burbank, Santa Clara County, California, a census-designated place * Burbank, Illinois, ...

(BUR) *

Medellín Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...

(MDE) –

José María Córdova José María Córdova Muñoz, also known as the ''"Hero of Ayacucho"'', was a General of the Colombian army during the Independence War of Colombia, Perú, and Bolivia from Spain. Biographic data Córdova was born in Concepción, Antioquia ...

(MDE) and Olaya Herrera (EOH) * Melbourne (MEL) - Tullamarine (MEL), Essendon (MEB) and Avalon (AVV) * Miami (MIA) – Self-named (MIA), Fort Lauderdale (FLL), West Palm Beach (PBI) * Nagoya (NGO) – Centrair (NGO) and Komaki (NKM, formerly NGO) * San Diego - Self-named (SAN) and Tijuana (TIJ). TIJ is physically located in Tijuana, Mexico, but offers access directly to and from the US via the Cross Border Xpress. * San Francisco (SFO) – Self-named (SFO),

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

(OAK), San Jose–Mineta (SJC), Sonoma–Schulz (STS) * Seattle (SEA) – Tacoma (Sea–Tac) (SEA) and Paine Field (PAE) * Shanghai (SHA) – Pudong (PVG) and Hongqiao (SHA) * Taipei (TPE) – Taoyuan (formerly Chiang Kai-shek) (TPE) and Songshan (TSA, formerly TPE) * Tehran (THR) – Imam Khomeini (IKA) and Mehrabad (THR) When different cities with the same name each have an airport, they need to be assigned different codes. These are some examples: *

Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport , formerly Birmingham Municipal Airport and later Birmingham International Airport, is a civil-military airport serving Birmingham, Alabama. The airport also provides scheduled airline service fo ...

(BHM) is in Birmingham, Alabama, the United States and Birmingham Airport (BHX) is in Birmingham, England, United Kingdom. *

Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport , commonly known simply as San Jose International Airport, is a city-owned public airport in San Jose, California, United States. It is named after San Jose native Norman Mineta, former United St ...

(SJC) is in San Jose, California, the United States and Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) is in

San José, Costa Rica San José (; meaning "Saint Joseph") is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica, and the capital of the province of the same name. It is in the center of the country, in the mid-west of the Central Valley, within San José Canton. San ...

. * Portland International Jetport (PWM) is in Portland, Maine, while Portland International Airport (PDX) is in Portland, Oregon. *

Manchester Airport Manchester Airport is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2019, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passenger numbers and the busiest of those n ...

(MAN) is in Manchester, England, United Kingdom, while Manchester-Boston Regional Airport (MHT) is in Manchester, New Hampshire, United States. Sometimes, a new airport is built, replacing the old one, leaving the city's new "major" airport (or the only remaining airport) code to no longer correspond with the city's name. The original airport in Nashville, Tennessee, was built in 1936 as part of the Works Progress Administration and called Berry Field with the designation, BNA. A new facility known as Nashville International Airport was built in 1987 but still uses BNA. This is in conjunction to rules aimed to avoid confusion that seem to apply in the United States, which state that "the first and second letters or second and third letters of an identifier may not be duplicated with less than 200

nautical mile A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( of a degree) of latitude. Today ...

s separation." Thus, Washington, D.C. area's three airports all have radically different codes: IAD for

Washington–Dulles Washington Dulles International Airport , typically referred to as Dulles International Airport, Dulles Airport, Washington Dulles, or simply Dulles ( ), is an international airport in the Eastern United States, located in Loudoun County and F ...

, DCA for Washington–Reagan (District of Columbia Airport), and BWI for

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...

(Baltimore–Washington International, formerly BAL). Since HOU is used for William P. Hobby Airport, the new

Houston–Intercontinental George Bush Intercontinental Airport is an international airport in Houston, Texas, United States, serving the Greater Houston metropolitan area. Located about north of Downtown Houston between Interstate 45 (Texas), Interstate 45 and Inters ...

became IAH. The code BKK was originally assigned to Bangkok–Don Mueang and was later transferred to Suvarnabhumi Airport, while the former adopted DMK. The code ISK was originally assigned to Gandhinagar Airport (Nashik's old airport) and later on transferred to Ozar Airport (Nashik's current airport). Shanghai–Hongqiao retained the code SHA, while the newer Shanghai–Pudong adopted PVG. The opposite was true for Berlin: the airport Berlin–Tegel used the code TXL, while its smaller counterpart Berlin–Schönefeld used SXF; the Berlin Brandenburg Airport has the airport code BER, which is also part of its branding. The airports of Hamburg (HAM) and Hannover (HAJ) are less than apart and therefore share the same first and middle letters, indicating that this rule might be followed only in Germany.

Cities or airports changing names

Many cities retain historical names in their airport codes, even after having undergone an official name/spelling/transliteration change: * In Angola: NDD for

Sumbe Sumbe, formerly Novo Redondo, is a city located in west central Angola. It is the administrative capital of Cuanza Sul Province. In 2014 its population was 279,968. Climate The city has a dry tropical climate. The hottest temperatures are from ...

(formerly Novo Redondo),

NOV Nov or NOV may refer to: * November, the 11th month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars * Nav, Asalem (also , Nov or Nāv), a village in Gilan Province, Iran * Nov, Golan Heights, an Israeli moshav (a cooperative agricultural communi ...

for Huambo (formerly Nova Lisboa), PGI for

Chitato Chitato is a municipality of the province of Lunda Norte, in Angola. The population is 195,136 (2014 census). The municipality consists of the communes Luachimo and Dundo-Chitato. It is served by Chitato Airport Chitato Airport is an airpo ...

(formerly Portugália), VHC for Saurimo (formerly Henrique de Carvalho) * In Armenia: LWN for Gyumri (formerly Leninakan) * In Azerbaijan: KVD for

Ganja Ganja (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for marijuana. Its usage in English dates to before 1689. Etymology ''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi/Urdu ( hi, गांजा, links=no, ur, , links=no, IPA: �aːɲd͡� ...

(formerly Kirovabad) * In Bangladesh: DAC for Dhaka (formerly Dacca) * In Cambodia: KOS for Sihanoukville (formerly Kampong Som) * In Canada: YFB for Iqaluit (formerly Frobisher Bay) * In

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

: PEK for Beijing (formerly Peking),

TSN TSN may refer to: Science and technology * Translin, DNA binding protein involved in microRNA function * Taxonomic serial number, a stable and unique taxonomic serial number issued by the Integrated Taxonomic Information System * The Science Netwo ...

for Tianjin (formerly Tientsin), CKG for

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

(formerly Chungking), NKG for Nanjing (formerly Nanking),

TNA TNA may refer to: Organisations * Tamil National Alliance, a political coalition in Sri Lanka * The National Alliance, a political party in Kenya * The National Archives (United Kingdom), a UK public body * Tonga Nurses' Association, a trade union ...

for

Jinan Jinan (), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized as Tsinan, is the Capital (political), capital of Shandong province in East China, Eastern China. With a population of 9.2 million, it is the second-largest city i ...

(formerly Tsinan), TAO for

Qingdao Qingdao (, also spelled Tsingtao; , Mandarin: ) is a major city in eastern Shandong Province. The city's name in Chinese characters literally means " azure island". Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, it is a major nodal city of the One Belt ...

(formerly Tsingtao),

CTU CTU may refer to: Schools * Can Tho University, Vietnam * Capitol Technology University, Maryland * Catholic Theological Union, Illinois * Cebu Technological University, Philippines * Chienkuo Technology University, Taiwan * Chilean Traditional Un ...

for

(formerly Chengtu), KWE for

Guiyang Guiyang (; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), historically rendered as Kweiyang, is the capital of Guizhou province of the People's Republic of China. It is located in the center of the province, situated on the east of the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau, ...

(formerly Kweiyang) and

CAN Can may refer to: Containers * Aluminum can * Drink can * Oil can * Steel and tin cans * Trash can * Petrol can * Metal can (disambiguation) Music * Can (band), West Germany, 1968 ** ''Can'' (album), 1979 * Can (South Korean band) Other * C ...

for Guangzhou (formerly Canton). The older IATA codes follow Chinese postal romanization, introduced in 1906, officially abolished in 1964 and in use well into the 1980s, while gradually superseded by Pinyin. ** DYG for Zhangjiajie (formerly Dayong; a genuine change in city name, rather than just a change of romanization) * In the Czech Republic: GTW for Holešov Airport serving Zlín (formerly Gottwaldov) * In Greenland: most airports, including SFJ for Kangerlussuaq (formerly Søndre Strømfjord), GOH for Nuuk (formerly Godthåb) and JAV for

Ilulissat Ilulissat, formerly Jakobshavn or Jacobshaven, is the municipal seat and largest town of the Avannaata municipality in western Greenland, located approximately north of the Arctic Circle. With the population of 4,670 as of 2020, it is the t ...

(formerly Jakobshavn) * In India: BOM for Mumbai (formerly Bombay),

CCU CCU may refer to: Hospitals * Coronary care unit, a hospital wing meant for monitoring patients with heart problems * Critical care unit, in a hospital (UK terminology), similar to intensive care unit (ICU) in other countries; or, a unit that prov ...

for Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), and MAA for Chennai (formerly Madras) * In Indonesia: TKG for Bandar Lampung (formerly Tanjung Karang), UPG for

Makassar Makassar (, mak, ᨆᨀᨔᨑ, Mangkasara’, ) is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, Surabaya, Med ...

(formerly Ujung Pandang). In addition, when the Enhanced Indonesian Spelling System was introduced in 1972, a few older IATA codes retained the previous spelling: BTJ for

Banda Aceh Banda Aceh ( Acehnese: ''Banda Acèh'', Jawoë: كوتا بند اچيه) is the capital and largest city in the province of Aceh, Indonesia. It is located on the island of Sumatra and has an elevation of . The city covers an area of and had ...

(formerly Banda Atjeh), DJJ for

Jayapura Jayapura (formerly Dutch: ''Hollandia'') is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of Papua. It is situated on the northern coast of New Guinea island and covers an area of . The city borders the Pacific Ocean and Yos Sudarso ...

(formerly Djajapura), JOG for Yogyakarta (formerly Jogjakarta) * In Kazakhstan: NQZ for Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana and Tselinograd (TSE)), SCO for Aktau (formerly Shevchenko), GUW for

Atyrau Atyrau ( kk, Атырау, ', ; russian: Атырау, ), known until 1991 as Guryev (russian: Гурьев, ), is a city in Kazakhstan and the capital of Atyrau Region. Atyrau is a transcontinental city, at the mouth of the Ural River on the Cas ...

(formerly Guryev), KOV for Kokshetau (formerly Kokchetav), DMB for Taraz (formerly Dzhambyl),

PLX PLX, abbreviation of Picatinny Liquid Explosive, is a liquid binary explosive. It is a mixture of 95% nitromethane (NM) along with 5% ethylene diamine (EDA) as a sensitizer. Other amine compounds can be used instead of ethylene diamine, such as t ...

for Semey (formerly Semipalatinsk),

CIT CIT or cit may refer to: Organizations * CIT Group, an American banking and financial services company * CIT Bank, a subsidiary of CIT Group * Center for Information Technology, of the US government * Compagnia Italiana Turismo, an Italian travel ...

for Shymkent (formerly Chimkent), DZN for Jezkazgan (formerly Dzhezkazgan) * In Kyrgyzstan: FRU for

Bishkek Bishkek ( ky, Бишкек), ), formerly Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is also the administrative centre of the Chüy Region. The region surrounds the city, although the city itself is not part of ...

(formerly Frunze) * In Madagascar:

DIE Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...

for Antsiranana (formerly Diego-Suarez), WPB for

Boriziny Boriziny (French: Port-Bergé) is a city (commune urbaine) in western Madagascar in Sofia Region. Geography It is situated at the Route nationale 6 near the bay of Helodrano. The Bemarivo flows near Port Bergé, just before flowing into the Anjo ...

(formerly Port Bergé) * In Moldova: KIV for

Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ), also known as Kishinev (russian: Кишинёв, r=Kishinjóv ), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Republic of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial center, and is located in the ...

(formerly Kishinev) * In Montenegro: TGD for Podgorica (formerly Titograd) * In Mozambique: VJB for Xai-Xai (formerly João Belo), VPY for Chimoio (formerly Vila Pery), FXO for

Cuamba Cuamba is a city and district of Niassa Province in Mozambique, lying north west of Mount Namuli. Before independence the town was known as ''Nova Freixo'' (New Ash). It lies on the EN8 road, which connects it to the city of Nampula in the east ...

(formerly Nova Freixo) * In

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

: RGN for Yangon (formerly Rangoon); SNW for Thandwe (formerly Sandoway); TVY for Dawei (formerly Tavoy) * In Pakistan:

LYP Protein tyrosine phosphatase non-receptor type 22 (PTPN22) is a cytoplasmatic protein encoded by gene ''PTPN22'' and a member of PEST family of protein tyrosine phosphatases. This protein is also called "PEST-domain Enriched Phosphatase" ("PEP") or ...

for Faisalabad when the city changed its name from Lyallpur to Faisalabad in honour of the King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. * In Russia:

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...

for St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), GOJ for Nizhny Novgorod (formerly Gorky), SVX for Yekaterinburg (formerly Sverdlovsk),

KUF Qoph ( Phoenician Qōp ) is the nineteenth letter of the Semitic scripts. Aramaic Qop is derived from the Phoenician letter, and derivations from Aramaic include Hebrew Qof , Syriac Qōp̄ ܩ and Arabic . Its original sound value wa ...

for

Samara Samara ( rus, Сама́ра, p=sɐˈmarə), known from 1935 to 1991 as Kuybyshev (; ), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with ...

(formerly Kuybyshev), OGZ for Vladikavkaz (formerly Ordzhonikidze), KLD for Tver (formerly Kalinin) and others * In South Africa: NLP for Mbombela (formerly Nelspruit) and PTG for Polokwane (formerly Pietersburg) * In South Korea: KAG for Gangneung (formerly Kangnung), TAE for

Daegu Daegu (, , literally 'large hill', 대구광역시), formerly spelled Taegu and officially known as the Daegu Metropolitan City, is a city in South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; it is ...

(formerly Taegu) * In Tajikistan: LBD for Khujand (formerly Leninabad) * In Turkmenistan: KRW for Türkmenbaşy (formerly Krasnovodsk); CRZ for Türkmenabat (formerly Chardzhev) * In Ukraine: IEV for Kyiv (formerly Kiev); VSG for Luhansk (formerly Voroshilovgrad); KGO for Kropyvnytskyi (formerly Kirovograd); LWO for Lviv (formerly Lwów while part of Poland until 1939, and still called Lvov in Russian); IFO for

Ivano-Frankivsk Ivano-Frankivsk ( uk, Іва́но-Франкі́вськ, translit=Iváno-Frankívśk ), formerly Stanyslaviv ( pl, Stanisławów ; german: Stanislau), is a city located in Western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of Ivano-Frankivsk O ...

(in Soviet times spelt in Russian as Ivano-Frankovsk); * In Vietnam: SGN for

Ho Chi Minh City , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

(formerly Saigon) * In Western Sahara:

VIL VIL and similar can refer to: * Vertically integrated liquid, an estimate of the mass of precipitation within a cloud * Flanders Institute for Logistics (VIL), a non-profit organization by the Flemish government * The IATA code for Dakhla Airport ...

for Dakhla (formerly Villa Cisneros) Some airport codes are based on previous names associated with a present airport, often with a military heritage. These include: * Chicago's O'Hare, which is assigned ORD based on its old name of Orchard Field. It was expanded and renamed O'Hare in the mid-1950s. * Rickenbacker International Airport uses LCK, for its former name of Lockbourne Air Force Base. * North Texas Regional Airport uses PNX, for its former name of Perrin Air Force Station. * Fresno Yosemite International Airport uses the code FAT, derived from a previous name of the airport, Fresno Air Terminal. *

Orlando International Airport Orlando International Airport is a major public airport located 6 miles (10 km) southeast of Downtown Orlando, Florida. In 2021, it handled 19,618,838 passengers, making it the busiest airport in the state and seventh busiest airport i ...

was founded as Orlando Army Air Field #2 but uses MCO for having been renamed McCoy Air Force Base in 1959 in honor of a wing commander who crashed at the field in 1958. It was converted in the early 1960s to joint civilian/military use and renamed Orlando Jetport at McCoy, then renamed Orlando International Airport in the early 1980s. * Spokane International Airport was so named in 1960 but goes by GEG because it was built on the former Geiger Field, renamed in 1941 for Major Harold Geiger when the US Army acquired it. * Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport was originally named Moisant Field after daredevil aviator John Moisant, who died in 1910 in an airplane crash on agricultural land where the airport is now located. Its IATA code MSY was derived from Moisant Stock Yards, as Lakefront Airport retained the code NEW. * Lehigh Valley International Airport uses ABE, for its former name of Allentown– Bethlehem– Easton International Airport. * William R. Fairchild International Airport uses CLM, for its former name of Clallam County Municipal Landing Field. *

Chicago Executive Airport Chicago Executive Airport , formerly Palwaukee Municipal Airport, is a public airport 18 miles (33 km) northwest of Chicago, in the village of Wheeling, Illinois, Wheeling in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States. It i ...

uses PWK, for its former name, Palwaukee Municipal Airport (which was derived from its location on Palatine Road and Milwaukee Avenue). * Dallas Executive Airport used RBD, for its former name, Redbird Airport. * TSTC Waco Airport uses CNW, as it was formerly

Connally Air Force Base Connally may refer to: People * John Connally (1917–1993), 39th Governor of Texas (1963-1969); 61st U.S. Secretary of Treasury * Merrill Connally (1921–2001), American film actor, county administrative judge, and rancher * Nellie Conna ...

. * Glacier Park International Airport uses FCA, for its former name Flathead County Airport. Some airports are named for an administrative division or nearby city, rather than the one they are located in: *

Grand Strand Airport Grand Strand Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located one nautical mile (1.85 km) northwest of the central business district of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, North Myrtle Beach, in Horry County, South Carolina, Horry Count ...

uses CRE for the former municipality of Crescent Beach, South Carolina. *

San Ignacio Town Airstrip San Ignacio Town Airstrip is a public use airport serving San Ignacio, a town in the Cayo District of Belize. The airport is southwest of San Ignacio and east of the border with Guatemala. It has a 718-meter runway and a small terminal build ...

, located in

San Ignacio, Belize San Ignacio and Santa Elena are towns in western Belize. San Ignacio serves as the cultural-economic hub of Cayo District. It got its start from mahogany and chicle production during British colonisation. Over time it attracted people from the s ...

, uses CYD because it is located in the

Cayo District Cayo District is a district located in the west part of Belize. It is the most extensive, second-most populous and third-most densely populated of the six districts of Belize. The district's capital is the town of San Ignacio. Geography Being ...

. * Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia uses DCA for the District of Columbia (DC) and Arlington. * Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Buraidah, Saudi Arabia uses ELQ for the Al-Qassim Province (El Qassim) * Damazin Airport in Sudan uses RSS, for the nearby Roseires Dam. Other airport codes are of obscure origin, and each has its own peculiarities: * Nashville uses BNA for its former name as Berry Field, henceforth ''B''erry ''N''ashville ''A''irport * Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport is SDF for Standiford Field, its original name (Dr. Elisha David Standiford who, as a businessman and legislator, played an important role in Louisville transportation history and owned part of the land on which the airport was built.) * Knoxville uses TYS for

Charles McGhee Tyson McGhee Tyson Airport is a public/military airport 12 miles south of Knoxville, Tennessee, Knoxville,. Federal Aviation Administration. effective November 15, 2012. in Alcoa, Tennessee, Alcoa, Blount County, Tennessee, United States. It is named ...

, whose family donated the land for the first airport in Knoxville * Kahului, the main gateway into

Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...

, uses OGG in homage to Hawaiian aviation pioneer Bertram J. Hogg * Gold Coast, Australia, uses OOL due to its former name as Coolangatta Airport, named after the suburb in which it is located *

Sunshine Coast Sunshine Coast may refer to: * Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia **Sunshine Coast Region, a local government area of Queensland named after the region **Sunshine Coast Stadium * Sunshine Coast (British Columbia), geographic subregion of the Br ...

, Australia, uses MCY due to its former names Maroochydore Airport and Maroochydore-Sunshine Coast Airport. It is actually located in Marcoola rather than Maroochydore *

Yan'an Nanniwan Airport Yan'an Nanniwan Airport is a dual-use military and public airport serving the city of Yan'an in northern Shaanxi Province. It is located in Liulin Town (), Baota District, southwest of the city center. Yan'an was formerly served by Yan'an E ...

inherited the ENY code from the city of Yan'an's old airport,

Yan'an Ershilipu Airport Yan'an Ershilipu Airport was a dual-use military and public airport serving the city of Yan'an in Shaanxi Province, China. It was opened in 1980, replacing the former Yan'an Dongguan Airport which was built in January 1936. It was closed on 8 ...

. In Asia, codes that do not correspond with their city's names include Niigata's KIJ, Nanchang's

KHN KHN may refer to * Knoop hardness number * Kerwin-Huelsman-Newcomb, a type of electronic filter * IATA code of Nanchang Changbei International Airport, in Jiangxi province, China * Kaiser Health News * Kettering Health Network {{dab ...

, Pyongyang's FNJ, and

's UKB.

Multiple codes for a single airport

EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg, which serves three countries, has three airport codes: BSL, MLH, EAP

Airport codes using the English name of the city

Some European cities have a different name in their respective language than in English, yet the airport code represents ''only'' the English name. Examples include: * CGN - Cologne/Köln (Germany) * CPH - Copenhagen/København (Denmark) * FLR - Florence/Firenze (Italy) * GVA - Geneva/Genève (Switzerland) * OPO - Oporto/Porto (Portugal) * PRG - Prague/Praha (Czechia) * VCE - Venice/Venezia (Italy) * VIE - Vienna/Wien (Austria)

Lack of codes

There are several airports with scheduled service that have not been assigned ICAO codes that do have IATA codes. For example, several airports in Alaska have scheduled commercial service, such as Stebbins and Nanwalek, which use FAA codes instead. There are also airports with scheduled service for which there are ICAO codes but not IATA codes, such as Nkhotakota Airport/Tangole Airport in Malawi or Chōfu Airport in Tokyo, Japan. There are also several minor airports in Russia (e.g.

Omsukchan Airport Omsukchan Airport is a minor airport built 7 km south of Omsukchan in Magadan Oblast, Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and N ...

) which instead use internal Russian codes for booking. Flights to these airports cannot be booked through the international air booking systems or have international luggage transferred there, and thus, they are booked instead through the airline or a domestic booking system. Thus, neither system completely includes all airports with scheduled service. Several heliports in Greenland have 3-letter codes used internally which might be IATA codes for airports in faraway countries.

Use in colloquial speech

Some airports are identified even in the colloquial speech by their airport code. The most notable examples are LAX, DFW and JFK.

References

External links

IATA official web site

IATA Airline and Airport Code Search
– includes IATA codes
OpenFlights
a freely licensed ( ODbL) aviation data set {{DEFAULTSORT:International Air Transport Association Airport Code Geocodes Airport code Location codes he:יאט"א#קוד יאט"א