Teniente Benjamín Matienzo International Airport is an international airport east of the city of San Miguel de Tucumán in

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 ...

. It serves

Tucumán Province Tucumán () is the most densely populated, and the second-smallest by land area, of the provinces of Argentina. Located in the northwest of the country, the province has the capital of San Miguel de Tucumán, often shortened to Tucumán. Neighb ...

in the north of the country. It was built in 1981, and its terminal was inaugurated on 12 October 1986. The airport provides four departure gates, two arrival gates, immigration and passenger services, plus the second largest cargo terminal in Argentina. The airport is named in honor of who died in the first attempt to fly over the

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Overview

This airport replaced the old one, located on the Ninth of July Park, because of its location only from the Plaza Independencia, and the lack of space for expansion, plus noise restrictions and the risks of having an airport in the very city centre. The old airport had one runway of and was closed in 1987. The main bus station uses parts of the apron of the airport, while the Music School from the Universidad Nacional de Tucumán uses the former passenger terminal. The departures pavilion was rebuilt in 2005, with international flights facilities and a jet bridge. It can accommodate all kinds of aircraft, such as the

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Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...

or Boeing 777. A freight terminal was constructed in 2013. On 9 April 2013, the runway designation changed from 01/19 to 02/20 due to magnetic variation. The airport was closed between June and September 2017, when the runway was extended from , making it the second longest in Argentina, after Piloto Civil Norberto Fernández International Airport in Río Gallegos.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Cargo

Tucumán is the second busiest airport in Argentina by cargo tonnage, after Buenos Aires-Ezeiza. Most cargo flights are scheduled between September and November, taking fresh fruit to Europe and the United States.

Statistics

Ground transportation

Tucumán International Airport has direct public transport links to San Miguel de Tucumán served by Bus nº 121 to the Bus Terminal Station, through AV. Avellaneda. Route A016 (continuation from Av. Sarmiento) provides access to the City Center. Taxis and rental cars are available as well, as is the case in most airports.

Accidents and incidents

* On 28 August 1975, leftist guerillas set off explosives on the runway as a military C-130 Hercules plane was attempting to take off. Four people on board were killed and 35 injured. * In 1981, Austral Líneas Aéreas Flight 901 crashed in a river near Buenos Aires, en route from Tucumán, killing all 31 on board.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Teniente General Benjamin Matienzo International Airport Buildings and structures in San Miguel de Tucumán Airports established in 1981 Airports in Tucumán Province