Macau International Airport

Macau International Airport ( zh, 澳門國際機場; pt, Aeroporto Internacional de Macau) is an international airport in the special administrative region of Macau, situated at the eastern end of Taipa island and neighbouring waters which opened for commercial operations on 9 November 1995, during Portuguese administration of the region.

Since then the airport has been a common transfer point for people traveling between the Mainland and Taiwan, as well as a passenger hub for destinations in mainland China and Southeast Asia. During 2006, the airport handled 5 million passengers and 220,000 tonnes of cargo. In 2017 the number of passengers had increased to 7,165,803, which is more than the 6 million passengers per year the terminal was originally designed for.

History

During the 1990s, the Macau airport had a direct link to Europe. TAP Air Portugal, in cooperation with Sabena, started flying Airbus A340s to Lisbon via Brussels in April 1996, but within a few months the airlines were finding the route difficult to operate. For instance, TAP had not succeeded in aligning the flight timings with the schedules of Air Macau, which the Portuguese carrier partly owned. Air Macau passengers consequently could not connect smoothly onto the Lisbon flight and help fill the cabin. Additionally, the crew had to spend long layovers in Macau due to the low flight frequency. By 1997 TAP had changed the stopover to Bangkok, but it was still not making a profit. Although the Portuguese government initially ordered TAP to continue serving its then colony, the airline had withdrawn from Macau by early 1999.

Facilities

Terminal

The airport's designed capacity is 6,000,000 passengers per year, with processing capacity of up to 2,000 passengers per hour. The airport does not have a night curfew. There are 24 parking spaces for aircraft in the apron, with five jetways. There are 10 gates. As in Hong Kong, Macau has its own immigration policies and is a separate customs territory from mainland China. All travellers, including those to mainland China and Hong Kong, need to go through the immigration and customs inspections of international flights.

Runway and aprons

The airport's runway was built on a strip of reclaimed land in the sea, adjacent to Taipa Island, where the main terminal and air traffic control facilities are located, unlike in Hong Kong, where Chek Lap Kok has them all on a reclaimed island. The runway is connected to the apron by two causeways. Runway 34 is ILS CAT II equipped. Navigational and radio aids are located at either end of the runway. Despite its small area, the airport is capable of handling Boeing 747s and Antonov 124s, which forms a vital freight link between local manufacturers and overseas markets. Its catering facility can produce up to 10,000 meals per day.

Other tenants

Other tenants of the airport are the Macau Customs Service (Independent department under Secretariat for Security of Macau), the Macau Immigration Department/Services (Public Security Police Force of Macau), the Macau Business Aviation Centre, Servair Macau and Menzies Macau.

Redevelopment

Since 2016, Macau's government has been developing a master plan for the airport's expansion. To be done in three phases, the most visible sections of it broke ground in 2020.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Statistics

Annual traffic

Busiest routes

Ground transportation

The airport is connected by public transit bus routes, light rail, taxis, private cars, and regional coach services.

Air–sea link

For passengers transferring to China or Hong Kong, a "two customs, one checkpoint" service is provided. Passengers can use a bus shuttle directly from the airport to the New Macau Ferry Terminal or the Taipa Ferry Terminal without passing Macau immigration.

Bus

Towards Macau Peninsula, Taipa, Cotai and Coloane
*Transmac routes:
**26 – Bacia Norte do Patane ↔ Mercado Municipal de Coloane
**51A – The Praia ↔ Av. Vale das Borboletas
**AP1 – Portas do Cerco ↺ Aeroporto de Macau
**AP1X – Praça das Portas do Cerco ↺ Aeroporto de Macau (06:00–10:00, 15:00–20:00)
**MT4 – Parque M. Dr. Sun Yat Sen ↔ Terminal Marítimo de Passageiros da Taipa
* T.C.M. routes:
**N2 – Bacia Norte do Patane ↔ Terminal Marítimo de Passageiros da Taipa (00:00–06:00)
**36 – Rotunda Leonel Sousa ↺ Aeroporto de Macau
**MT1 – Praceta 24 de Junho ↺ Aeroporto de Macau

Cross-border coaches

Cross-border coaches connect Macau International Airport with mainland locations like Huadao, Guangzhou, Panyu, Dongguan, Gongbei Port of Entry and Hengqin Border. The "two customs, one checkpoint" service is also available at the Hengqin Border.

Light rail

The airport is served by the Airport Station of the Macau Light Rail Transit's Taipa Line at Avenida Wai Long.

See also

*Civil Aviation Authority of Macau SAR

References

External links

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Airports in Macau
Taipa
Artificial island airports
Airports established in 1995
1995 establishments in Macau
Artificial islands of China