Mohammed V International Airport
| Mohammed V International Airport Aéroport international Mohammed V مطار محمد الخامس الدولي | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||||||||||
| IATA: CMN – ICAO: GMMN | |||||||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | ONDA | ||||||||||||||
| Serves | Casablanca, Morocco | ||||||||||||||
| Location | Nouasseur | ||||||||||||||
| Hub for | |||||||||||||||
| Focus city for | |||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 656 ft / 200 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 33°22′02″N 007°35′23″W / 33.36722°N 7.58972°WCoordinates: 33°22′02″N 007°35′23″W / 33.36722°N 7.58972°W | ||||||||||||||
| Website |
www | ||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||
  CMN Location of airport in Morocco | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Statistics (2009, 2010) | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Mohammed V International Airport (French: Aéroport international Mohammed V, Arabic: مطار محمد الخامس الدولي, Matar Muhammad al-Khamis ad-Dowaly, IATA: CMN, ICAO: GMMN) is an international airport serving Casablanca, Morocco. Located in Nouaceur Province, it is operated by ONDA (National Airports Office). With just under 8 million passengers passing through the airport in 2014, it was the busiest airport in Morocco and the fourth busiest in Africa.[1][5][6][7][8] In August 2014, ONDA reported a year-on-year increase of 7.28% passenger traffic, to 918,238.[9] The airport serves as hub for Morocco's flag carrier Royal Air Maroc, Jetairfly, Air Arabia Maroc and RAM Express. It is named after King Mohammed V of Morocco.
History
1940s
The Casablanca Mohammed V Airport was originally built by the United States in early 1943 during World War II as an auxiliary airfield for Casablanca's Anfa Airport and was named Berrechid Airfield. The airfield handled diverse military traffic as a stopover en route to Port Lyautey Airfield, and to Marrakech Airport on the North African Cairo-Dakar route. In addition, it was the terminus of Mid-Atlantic route transatlantic flights via the Azores to Nova Scotia and airfields on the East Coast of the United States.
In addition to its transportation role, the airfield supported the North African Campaign with the Twelfth Air Force 68th Reconnaissance Group operating photo-reconnaissance versions of the P-38 Lightning and P-51 Mustang. Part of the 68th first arrived at Angads Airport in Oujda in November 1942 and moved to Berrechid in March 1943 upon its completion. It flew both antisubmarine missions over the Atlantic and photo-reconnaissance combat missions over German-held territory until early September when it moved east to Massicault Airfield in Tunisia. With the end of the war in 1945, the airfield was handed over to the civil government.
1950s
During the Cold War in the early and middle 1950s, the airfield was reopened as Nouasseur Air Base and was used as a United States Air Force Strategic Air Command staging area for B-47 Stratojet bombers pointed at the Soviet Union. These operations later moved to Ben Guerir Air Base.
With the destabilisation of French government in Morocco, and Moroccan independence in 1956, the government of Mohammed V wanted the US Air Force to pull its bases out of Morocco, insisting on such action after American intervention in Lebanon in 1958. The United States agreed to leave in December 1959, and was fully out of Morocco by 1963. The U.S. felt that, with the long range of the B-52 and completion of Spanish bases in 1959, the Moroccan bases were no longer important.
Even today, most locals still refer to the airport simply as "Nouaceur", which is the name of the province it is in.
Airlines and destinations
Passenger
Cargo
Traffic
| Traffic[12] | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | Average growth 2004–2009 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aircraft movements[12] | n/a | – | 69,119 | +1.11% | 68,362 | −2.5% | 70,080 | +7.6% | 65,111 | +9.2% | 59,621 | +13.9% | 52,336 | +5.86% |
| Passengers[12] | 7,245,508[8] | +13,28 | 6,395,862 | +2.95% | 6,209,711 | +6.0% | 5,858,192 | +15.5% | 5,071,411 | +12.1% | 4,456,639 | +17.1% | 3,803,479 | +10.73% |
| Freight (tons)[12] | n/a | – | 53,469 | -6.06% | 56,919 | −6.5% | 60,682 | +9.3% | 55,673 | +10.7% | 50,285 | +6.5% | 47,152 | +2.79% |
Passenger services
Mohammed V is one of the six airports in Morocco where ONDA offers its special VIP service Salon Convives de Marque.[13]
Ground transportation
A train service (from 04:00 to 23:00) is available every hour from Casablanca Port station to the Casablanca airport; it costs €4 second class or €6 first class.[14]
Taxis are available 24 hours per day from the airport to Casa city or surbubs at a cost of €30.
Many private shuttle companies serve Casablanca airport ; CTM bus company, Royal Air Maroc, and since 2015 Air Arabia began bus transfers to neighbouring cities.[15]
Car
- From Casablanca main access is by A7 Motorway;
- From Rabat by A3 Motorway through Tit Mellil and Road N9;
- From Beni Mellal by A8 Motorway;
- From Marrakech by A7 Motorway exit km 225;
- From El Jadida by A5 Motorway and A7 Motorway.[16]
Incidents and accidents
- On 24 August 1994, a Royal Air Maroc ATR-42 crashed near Tizounine while en route from Agadir to Casablanca Mohammed V airport. The plane crashed with a steep dive in the Atlas mountains. All 40 passengers and 4 crew died in this accident. It is said that the captain disconnected the autopilot and let the plane crash deliberately. The Moroccan Pilots Union challenged these findings.[17][18]
- On 1 April 1970, a Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle crashed on approach to Casablanca Mohammed V airport when it lost control at a height of about 500 feet. The fuselage broke in two. Sixty one of the 82 passengers and crew were killed.[18][19]
See also
References
- 1 2 "Aéroport Mohammed V Trafic aérien en 2014" [Mohammed V Airport Air Traffic in 2014] (pdf) (Press release) (in French). Office National Des Aéroports (ONDA). 30 January 2005. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
- ↑ "Mohammed V International airport – Economic and social impacts". Ecquants. Retrieved 7 September 2013.
- ↑ Airport information for GMMN from DAFIF (effective October 2006)
- ↑ Airport information for CMN at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- ↑ "Passenger Statistics - O.R. Tambo International Airport". Airports Company South Africa. 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
- ↑ "Passenger Statistics - Cape Town International Airport". Airports Company South Africa. 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
- ↑ "EHCAAN Statistics". Egyptian Holding Company for Airports and Air Navigation. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
- 1 2 "Aéroports du Maroc: Trafic du mois de Décembre 2010" [Airports of Morocco: Traffic for December 2010] (PDF) (Press release) (in French). Office Nationale des Aéroports.
- ↑ "Communiqué Statistics AOUT 2014" [Statistical Report, AUGUST 2014] (PDF) (in French). ONDA. August 2014. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ↑ Royal Air Maroc Adds Washington Dulles Service from Sep 2016
- ↑ "Jetairfly Flight Plan". Jetairfly.
- 1 2 3 4 "Casablanca Airport Passenger Statistics for 2008" (PDF). ONDA. 2008.
- ↑ "Je suis professionel" [I'm a business traveller]. ONDA (in French). Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ↑ (French) ONCF transfère la desserte de l’AEROPORT Mohamed V À CASA-PORT
- ↑ (French) Nouvelle Navette Aéroportuaire Entre l'aeroport de Casablanca et Beni Mellal, Khouribga ainsi que Fkih Ben Salah
- ↑ (French) Accès par route
- ↑ "ATR-42 RAM crash". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
- 1 2 "Fatal Events Since 1970 for Royal Air Maroc". airsafe.com. 1 June 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ↑ "SE-210 RAM crash". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
External links
Media related to Mohammed V International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
- Mohammed V International Airport
- Moroccan Airports Authority
- Accident history for CMN at Aviation Safety Network
- Aeronautical chart for GMMN at SkyVector
- Current weather for GMMN at NOAA/NWS
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
