Juan Gualberto Gómez Airport , formerly known as Varadero Airport ( es, Aeropuerto de Varadero), is an international

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

serving

Varadero, Cuba Varadero (), also referred to as ''Playa Azul'' (Blue Beach), is a resort town in the province of Matanzas, Cuba, and one of the largest resort areas in the Caribbean. Varadero Beach was rated one of the world's best beaches in TripAdvisor's Trav ...

and the province of

Matanzas Matanzas (Cuban ) is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas. Known for its poets, culture, and Afro-Cuban folklore, it is located on the northern shore of the island of Cuba, on the Bay of Matanzas (Spanish ''Bahia de Matanzas''), east ...

. The airport is located 5 km from the village of Carbonera, closer to the city of

than to Varadero. The closest airport to Varadero is

Kawama Airport Kawama Airport ( es, Aeropuerto "Kawama" ) is an airport serving Varadero, in the Matanzas Province in Cuba. History Kawama Airport was the original international airport serving Varadero. It served over 330,000 Cubans who fled the country ...

. In 2009, the airport handled 1.28 million passengers, making it the second busiest airport in Cuba after

José Martí International Airport José Martí International Airport , sometimes known by its former name Rancho Boyeros Airport, is an international airport located southwest of the centre of Havana, Cuba, and is a hub for Cubana de Aviación and Aerogaviota, and former Latin ...

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

History

Juan Gualberto Gomez Airport was built in 1989 and inaugurated by

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

, thus replacing the old Varadero airport located in Santa Marta, currently known as

. The airport was named after a journalist, fighter for the Cuban Independence and black rights activist in Cuba

Juan Gualberto Gómez Juan Gualberto Gómez Ferrer (July 12, 1854 – March 5, 1933) was an Afro-Cuban revolutionary leader in the Cuban War of Independence against Spain. He was a "close collaborator of Martí's," and alongside him helped plan the upris ...

(1854–1933). Bust of Juan Gualberto Gómez

The terminal building has shops for tourists (including rum, cigars, T-shirts, books, carvings, pharmaceuticals) both before customs check point, at a large departures lounge with cafeterias on the upper level and a smaller air conditioned VIP lounge the lower level. Immigration checkpoint consists of wooden booths for push doors opened by immigration officers after travelers have been processed. Customs check point consists of three x-ray machines. Two flights of stairs and an escalator take travelers to the departure lounge. Tour operators offices are located near the domestic terminal area. The ground handling equipment is imported mainly from North America. There are four jet bridges (serving parking areas 2 to 5), but air stairs are used for the remaining aircraft parking space #1 on the apron by the terminal.

Airlines and destinations

In April 2020, Cuba stopped all scheduled flights. In October 2020, it was announced that the airport would be reopening for flights with tourists being restricted to a "bubble" but before that began, the province moved to the "new normality" and the airport reopened for regular commercial flights, with flights from Mexico and the UK.

Accidents and incidents

There have been five significant incidents involving aircraft from or en route to the airport since the 1950s. Only 1 flight involved resulted in fatalities. Three flights involved Cubans hijacking an aircraft to flee to the United States. * 6 March 2005 -

Air Transat Flight 961 Air Transat Flight 961 was an Air Transat flight from Varadero, Cuba to Quebec City, Canada on March 6, 2005. The aircraft experienced a structural failure in which the rudder detached in flight. The flight crew were able to regain enough co ...

Airbus A310 returned safely to airport following detachment of rudder after takeoff. * 29 December 1992 -

Aerocaribbean Aero Caribbean (Empresa Aerocaribbean SA) was an airline based in Vedado, Plaza de la Revolución, Havana, Cuba. It operated scheduled domestic passenger services to domestic destinations and international services, and charter flights mainly wi ...

Antonov 26 The Antonov An-26 ( NATO reporting name: Curl) is a twin-engined turboprop civilian and military transport aircraft, designed and produced in the Soviet Union from 1969 to 1986.Gordon, Yefim. Komissarov, Dmitry & Sergey. "Antonov's Turboprop Twin ...

was hijacked en route to Varadero Airport from Havana. The aircraft landed in Miami. Accidents and incidents that occurred at Varadero (Santa Marta) Airport (now as

): * 3 July 1961 -

Cubana de Aviación Cubana de Aviación S.A., commonly known as Cubana, is Cuba's flag carrier, as well as the country's largest airline. It was founded in , becoming one of the earliest airlines to emerge in Latin America. It has its corporate headquarters in Ha ...

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...

was hijacked en route to Varadero Airport from Havana. Aircraft lands in Miami. * 25 April 1959 - Cubana de Aviación

Vickers Viscount The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner. The Visc ...

was hijacked after takeoff from the Varadero Airport and forced to land at Key West International Airport. * 1 November 1958 - Cubana de Aviación Flight 495 Vickers Viscount 755D crashes in

Nipe Bay Nipe Bay ( es, Bahía de Nipe) is a bay on the northern coast of Cuba in Holguín Province, part of the former Oriente Province.''Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary'', Third Edition, p. 830. It is part of the municipalities of Mayarí and ...

when attempting an emergency landing at the airport, which was then known as Preston Airport. The plane was en route to Varadero from Miami with 20 on board. Only 3 survived with 17 fatalities.

References

External links

Cubana destinations and airports
{{DEFAULTSORT:Juan Gualberto Gomez Airport Airports in Cuba Cárdenas, Cuba Matanzas Buildings and structures in Matanzas Province