Gov. Carlos Wilson Airport is the airport serving the island of

Fernando de Noronha Fernando de Noronha () is an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the State of Pernambuco, Brazil, and located off the Brazilian coast. It consists of 21 islands and islets, extending over an area of . Only the eponymous main island is in ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. It is the easternmost airport of

and the only facility located in the

ian oceanic islands. It is operated by Dix Empreendimentos.

History

Fernando de Noronha is the biggest island of the archipelago with the same name, located in Brazilian territorial waters, away from

Recife That it may shine on all ( Matthew 5:15) , image_map = Brazil Pernambuco Recife location map.svg , mapsize = 250px , map_caption = Location in the state of Pernambuco , pushpin_map = Brazil#South A ...

and away from

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

. The first runway was built in 1934. In 1942, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the runway was extended and a passenger terminal was built by the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...

under the Airport Development Program. It provided technical support for the

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from :wo:daqaar, daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar ...

air route, which provided a transoceanic link between

and French West Africa for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel. The airport was transferred to the jurisdiction of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

on 5 September 1944. After the end of the war, the administration of the airport was transferred back to the Brazilian Government. In 1975 another extension of the runway was made, allowing the operations of aircraft up to the class of a

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...

. In March 1999, the present passenger terminal was opened for service. Following the crash of

Air France Flight 447 Air France Flight 447 (AF447 or AFR447) was a scheduled international passenger flight from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to Paris, France. On 1 June 2009, inconsistent airspeed indications led to the pilots inadvertently stalling the Airbus A330 ser ...

on June 1, 2009, the airport became a base for search and rescue operations. The flight was en route from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão to

Paris-Charles de Gaulle Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (french: Aéroport de Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle, ), also known as Roissy Airport or simply Paris CDG, is the principal airport serving the French capital, Paris ( and its metropolitan area), and the largest intern ...

when it disappeared in the Atlantic Ocean approximately northeast of Fernando de Noronha. Floating debris and bodies were recovered within five days (the flight recorders however, would not be recovered until 2011), and it was determined that the aircraft had crashed into the Atlantic Ocean killing all 228 people on board. Starting October 12, 2022, the operation of Jet engine aircraft at the airport was indefinitely but temporarily suspended by the

National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil The National Civil Aviation Agency (''Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil'' in Portuguese), also known as ANAC, is the Brazilian civil aviation authority, created in 2005. It is headquartered in the Edifício Parque Cidade Corporate in Brasília ...

. Operations of

Turboprop A turboprop is a turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction gearbox, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propelling nozzle. Air enters the intake and is compressed by the compressor. ...

aircraft were not affected. The reason for the decision was the condition of the runway which is in need of repairs. The problem had already been reported to the operator in 2019 but repairs were not satisfactory. Following this decision, Gol Linhas Aéreas for lack of authorized aircraft had to temporarily suspend its flights to the island, and Azul Brazilian Airlines switched the operation of its flights to

ATR 72-600 The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR (french: Avions de transport régional or it, Aerei da Trasporto Regionale), a joint venture formed ...

aircraft in lieu of

Embraer 195 The Embraer E-Jet family is a series of four-abreast narrow-body short- to medium-range twin-engine jet airliners designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer. The E-Jet was designed as a complement to the preceding E ...

and Embraer 195-E2 aircraft.

Airlines and destinations

Accidents and incidents

*14 December 1987: a Brazilian Air Force

Lockheed C-130H Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally design ...

registration FAB-2468 flying from

to Fernando de Noronha crashed into the sea shortly before landing. All 29 crew and passengers died. *20 September 1990: an Embraer EMB110P1 Bandeirante registration PT-PAW belonging to the Government of Pernambuco flying from Fernando de Noronha to

crashed into the sea shortly after take-off. All 12 crew and passengers died.

Access

The airport is located from Vila dos Remédios, the administrative center of the island.

References

External links