Toncontín International Airport

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Toncontín International Airport

IATA: TGU – ICAO: MHTG
Summary
Airport type		Military/Public
Operator		Military of Honduras
Location		Tegucigalpa
Elevation AMSL		3,294 ft / 1,004 m
Coordinates		14°03′39″N 087°13′02″W / 14.06083, -87.21722
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	m	ft	Surface
02/20	1,863	6,112	Asphalt

Toncontín International Airport (IATA: TGU, ICAO: MHTG) is a civil and military airport that serves Tegucigalpa, Honduras. It is 6 km away from Tegucigalpa's center.

1 Toncontín
2 Removal of International flights
3 Airlines and destinations
4 Accidents and incidents
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Toncontín

757 landing at Toncontín runway

The airport's single runway is 1,863 m (6,112 feet) in length and is at an altitude of 1,004 m (3,294 feet). Boeing 757s are the largest aircraft that can land at Toncontín, as it is one of the shortest international runways in the world.

During the Football War of 1969, Toncontín was a major target for the Salvadoran Air Force, and it was bombed on several occasions.

Toncontín International Airport has 4 gates (2 in the new terminal), 2 baggage claim belts, 150 short term parking spaces, a post office, a bank, a bureau de change, many restaurants, several airline lounges, a duty free shop, car rental services and a first aid room. The old terminal is undergoing renovation, and will be used for domestic flights in the future. The new terminal is now used for international flights.

Toncontín is also the home of the Aeroclub de Honduras.

The origin of the name Toncontín is unknown. This airport has received much criticism for being one of the most dangerous in the world due to its proximity to the mountains and for years efforts have been made to replace it with Soto Cano airport in Comayagua, currently an airbase. Toncontín has been improved significantly by the work of CAT (the Airport Corporation of Tegucigalpa) and by InterAirports, a company hired by the government of Honduras to administer the four airports of the country.

[edit] Removal of International flights

After a TACA flight crashed on May 30, 2008 it was announced by Honduran President Manuel Zelaya that all large airplanes would, within 60 days, use the Soto Cano Air Base instead of Toncontín, removing all the International traffic from Toncontin limiting it to only domestic flights and small planes. ^[1]

[edit] Airlines and destinations

Aeroméxico
- Aeroméxico Connect (Mexico City, San Pedro Sula)[All flights redirected to Palmerola] [Starts June 20]
American Airlines (Miami) [All flights redirected to Palmerola]
Atlantic Airlines de Honduras (Roatan, La Ceiba, Puerto Lempira, San Pedro Sula, Útila, Guanaja, Belize City, Ahuas, Bluefields, Corn Island, Grand Cayman, Managua, Puerto Cabezas)
Continental Airlines (Houston-Intercontinental) [All flights redirected to Palmerola]
Copa Airlines (Panama City, San José (CR)) [All flights redirected to Palmerola]
TACA (Miami, San Salvador, Guatemala City, San Pedro Sula) [All flights redirected to Palmerola]
Islena Airlines (La Ceiba, San Pedro Sula)
Aerolineas Sosa (San Pedro Sula, La Ceiba, Roatan, Puerto Lempira)

[edit] Accidents and incidents

The worst crash associated with the airport came in 1989, when a Honduran airliner hit a nearby hill, killing 133 people.^[2]

On April 1, 1997, a U.S. Air Force C-130 cargo plane overshot the runway at Toncontin and rolled 200 yards before bursting into flames on a major boulevard, killing three people aboard.^[3]

On May 30, 2008 an Airbus A320, Grupo TACA Flight 390 from San Salvador, overran the runway in approach to Tegucigalpa Airport.^[2]^[3] The accident was partly blamed on bad weather conditions.^[3] At least 7 fatalities have been confirmed.^[2] There have been renewed calls to permanently shut down the non-compliant airport. The Honduran government has announced plans to relocate commercial airline traffic to Soto Cano Air Base.