Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport (AIP
an
Chart
for ''Aéroport de Tamanrasset / Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok'' (DAAT) from ''Service d'Information Aéronautique – Algérie'') , also known as Aguenar Airport or Tamanrasset Airport, is an airport serving

Tamanrasset Tamanrasset (; ), also known as Tamanghasset or Tamenghest, is an oasis city and capital of Tamanrasset Province in southern Algeria, in the Ahaggar Mountains. It is the chief city of the Algerian Tuareg. It is located at an altitude of . As of ...

, a city in the

Tamanrasset Province Tamanrasset or Tamanghasset ( ''Wilāya Tamanrāssat'', ) is a province (''wilaya'') in southern Algeria. It is named after its province seat, Tamanrasset. The province is the home of two national parks: Ahaggar National Park and Tassili n'Ajj ...

of southern

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. It is located northwest of the city.

Airlines and destinations

Military and government use

The

Algerian Air Force The Algerian Air Force (, ) is the aerial arm of the Algerian People's National Army. History The Algerian Air Force was created to support the fight of the People's National Army against the French occupying forces. It came as part of the ...

is the primary military user of the airport with several units maintaining a presence at the field. In the mid-2000s, it was extensively upgraded to serve additionally as a military base, with 10 hardened aircraft shelters,

aprons An apron is a garment worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body to protect from liquids. They have several purposes, most commonly as a functional accessory that protects clothes and skin from stains and marks. However, other typ ...

, personnel accommodation and other facilities. The most potent military aircraft based at Tamanrasset are the Sukhoi Su-30MK multi-role fighter aircraft operated by the 123rd Air Defense Squadron which provide fighter coverage for much of southern Algeria. A reconnaissance unit equipped with Beechcraft 1900HISAR and 350ER aircraft specially equipped with surveillance equipment operates from the base along with helicopter detachments operating Mil Mi-171Sh, Mi-24 Mk.III and Mi-26T2 helicopters to support the ground forces in the region. The airport has been used for American military operations.

Statistics

Incidents and accidents

*On 8 February 1978, Douglas C-49J N189UM of Aero Service Corporation was damaged beyond repair in a landing accident at Tamanrasset. *On 18 September 1994, an Oriental Airlines charter flight returning Nigerian football team Iwuanyanwu Nationale FC home from their CAF Cup quarterfinal football match against Esperance de Tunis crashed while landing at the airport, killing three crew and two passengers, defender Aimola Omale and goalkeeper Uche Ikeogu. *On 6 March 2003,

Air Algérie Flight 6289 Air Algérie Flight 6289 (AH6289) was an Algerian domestic passenger flight from Tamanrasset to the nation's capital of Algiers with a stopover in Ghardaïa, operated by Algerian national airline Air Algérie. On 6 March 2003, the aircraft ...

crashed at 3:45 pm local time (1445 GMT). The flight was leaving

bound for

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

with the co-pilot acting as pilot-in-command. At a height of 78 feet and a speed of 158 kts, the No. 1 engine suffered a turbine failure. The captain took control. The co-pilot asked if she should raise the gear, but the captain did not respond. The

Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retained the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating ...

lost speed, stalled, and broke up on rocky terrain about 1600 metres past the runway. The accident was caused by the loss of an engine during a critical phase of flight, the non-retraction of the

landing Landing is the last part of a flight, where a flying animal, aircraft, or spacecraft returns to the ground. When the flying object returns to water, the process is called alighting, although it is commonly called "landing", "touchdown" or " spl ...

gear after the engine failure, and the Captain taking over control of the airplane before having clearly identified the problem. There were 102 fatalities and one survivor. *On 31 March 2025, malian Akinci and Mig-29 incident.

References

External links

Google Maps - Tamanrasset
*
Algeria plane crash kills 102
at CNN.com
Archive

Official accident report from the Algerian Ministry of Transport (in English)Archive
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aguenar - Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport Airports in Algeria Buildings and structures in Tamanrasset Province Space Shuttle Emergency Landing Sites