Rodríguez Ballón International Airport (, ) is an

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

serving

Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara language, Aymara and ), also known by its nicknames of ''Ciudad Blanca'' (Spanish for "White City") and ''León del Sur'' (Spanish for "South's Lion"), is a city in Peru and the capital of the eponymous Arequipa (province), ...

, the capital of

Arequipa Region Arequipa () is a department and region in southwestern Peru. It is the sixth largest department in Peru, after Puno, Cuzco, Madre de Dios, Ucayali, and Loreto, its sixth most populous department, and its eleventh least densely populated dep ...

and

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

's second largest city. This airport and

Cusco Cusco or Cuzco (; or , ) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the eponymous Cusco Province, province and Cusco Region, department. The city was the cap ...

's Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport are the main air hubs in southern

. It is named for early Peruvian aviator Alfredo Rodríguez Ballón. It is the third busiest airport in Peru. It is the main air gateway for tourists visiting the city of Arequipa, nearby ruins, and the Colca Canyon, the world's second deepest canyon (only behind Cotahuasi Canyon, also in Arequipa). The airport's passenger traffic has grown very rapidly since the airport was granted in concession as part of 6 airports in the southern part of Peru to Aeropuertos Andinos del Perú. As of the end of 2017 passenger traffic was 1,689,921 as reported by CORPAC, Peru's national airport corporation. The current terminal has already excedeed its planned capacity (around 1.5 million passengers) and it is expected that the airport will reach 2 million passengers on or before the year 2020 and is to be expanded. The runway is paved its entire length, which includes a

displaced threshold A displaced threshold or DTHR is a runway threshold located at a point other than the physical beginning or end of the runway. The portion of the runway behind a displaced threshold may be used for takeoff in either direction and landings from t ...

on Runway 28. The airport is currently operated by the consortium "Aeropuertos Andinos", who reshuffled and modernized the existing facilities. The installation of two boarding jetbridges and the expansion of the main hall, are among the work carried out by the consortium. The hall and the first jetbridge entered in operation on 20 September 2013. The airport currently handles domestic flights from Cusco, and Lima along with

Guayaquil Guayaquil (), officially Santiago de Guayaquil, is the largest city in Ecuador and also the nation's economic capital and main port. The city is the capital (political), capital of Guayas Province and the seat of Guayaquil Canton. The city is ...

and Cartagena via Lima. It's a secondary base for airline JetSmart Perú.

History

Rodríguez Ballón International Airport was opened in August 1979 and named after Peruvian aviator, Alfredo Rodríguez Ballón, who is famous in Arequipa for crossing the

Andes Mountains The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long and wide (widest between 18°S ...

from

Mendoza, Argentina Mendoza (), officially the City of Mendoza (), is the capital of the Provinces of Argentina, province of Mendoza Province, Mendoza in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plain ...

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

in 1932. He would later be killed in a plane crash during the Colombia–Peru War. The airport quickly became one of the largest and busiest airports in Peru, even surpassing Cusco's Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport for a few years. It was built with a maximum capacity for 500,000 passengers. It is owned by CORPAC S.A (Corporación Peruana de Aeropuertos y Aviación Comercial S.A.), the Peruvian Corporation of Comercial Airports and Aviation, the largest airport corporation in Peru. Large airlines such as former flag carrier Aeroperú, Faucett Perú and Nuevo Continente dominated the airport, having international destinations to

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

and

along with many other airports in Peru but were all declared bankrupt in the 1990s and 2000s, with foreign owned airlines such as LATAM Airlines Perú taking control of the market. In March 1983, a

Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for troo ...

of the

Peruvian Air Force The Peruvian Air Force (, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Military of Peru, Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of aerial warfare, air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguarding i ...

arrived at the airport damaged after an accident. In 1996, Faucett Perú Flight 251 was approaching Arequipa from Lima on its way to Coronel FAP Carlos Ciriani Santa Rosa International Airport in Tacna. Unable to see the runway midst a thunderstorm. The aircraft crashed when it attempted to land, killing all 123 people onboard. It is considered the deadliest Peruvian aviation accident in history. The airport was given in concession to Aeropuertos Andinos del Perú (AAP) for 25 years in 2011 , even at that time the main terminal was operating at more than twice its planned capacity, the infrastructure was obsolete and neglected, part of the concession agreement required the airport operator to upgrade and expand the facilities. Over one million passengers flew through the airport which prompted the airport to be expanded and remodeled. In 2013, construction of two jet bridge's, expansion of the terminal and a new modern exterior work began and was completed that same year. By then, passenger traffic at the airport was growing by 11% and the airport was in need of another expansion. In 2023, Aeropuertos Andinos del Perú (AAP) announced another expansion and modernization of the airport with a planned investment of $26 million. The new expanded terminal is set to have a capacity of 2 million passengers every year. The airports expansion plan was accepted in 2024 and construction is planned to begin that same year. The new terminal is set to be completed in January 2026 and allow access to other countries such as

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and

Airlines and destinations

Passenger traffic information

Accidents and incidents

* On 18 March 1983,

E FAP-356 of the Fuerza Aérea del Perú was damaged beyond repair in an accident at Arequipa Airport. * On 29 February 1996, Faucett Perú Flight 251 was flying a stopover in Arequipa to Tacna and crashed while approaching the airport. All 123 passengers and crew died. It is the deadliest Peruvian aviation accident.

References

External links