Cairo International Airport

History

During World War II, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) built John Payne Field Air Force Base to serve the Allied Forces, rather than take over the existing Almaza Airport located 5 km away. Payne Field was a major Air Transport Command air cargo and passenger hub, connecting westwards through Benghazi Airport (during the war known as Soluch Airfield) to Algiers airport on the North African route to Dakar Airport, in French West Africa.

Other locations that transport routes were flown were RAF Habbaniya, Iraq on the Cairo – Karachi, India route; Lydda Airport, British Palestine; Jeddah, Arabia, on the Central African route to Roberts Field, Liberia (1941–1943), and later after the war ended, Athens, Greece and on to destinations in Europe.

When American forces left the base at the end of the war, the Civil Aviation Authority took over the facility and began using it for international civil aviation. In 1963, Cairo International Airport replaced the old Heliopolis Airport, which had been located at the Hike-Step area in the east of Cairo.

The airport is administered by the Egyptian Holding Company for Airports and Air Navigation, which controls the Cairo Airport Company, the Egyptian Airports Company, National Air Navigation Services and Aviation Information Technology, and the Cairo Airport Authority. In 2004, Fraport AG won the management contract to run the airport for eight years, with options to extend the contract twice in one-year increments.

Terminals

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 is the oldest terminal currently in operation, having been inaugurated on 18 March 1963 by President Gamal Abdel Nasser. Over the years, the terminal witnessed several expansion projects; a second hall was constructed between 1977–79 and a third one was completed in 1980. In the early 2000s, work commenced on the renovation of the ground floor, along with the addition of an expanded departure hall containing a mezzanine floor, thereby allowing more natural light into the terminal. All phases of the project were completed by the end of 2003.

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 was inaugurated in 1986 with 7 boarding gates. It primarily served European, Gulf and East Asian airlines. The terminal was closed in April 2010 for complete renovations starting in 2012 and lasting 36 months. The architecture of the building limited the opportunities for further expansion, which necessitated the entire building to be closed for major structural overhaul at an estimated cost of approximately $400 million.

Seasonal flight terminal

The terminal has an annual capacity of 3.2 million passengers with 27 check-in counters and 7 gates with a common gate and single security concept, the first in Cairo. It is designed to handle 1,200 passengers per hour. Passengers will be bussed to remote aircraft stands around Terminal 3. Its purpose is to ease operational strains on the existing terminals during pilgrim seasons.

Facilities

Overview

The airport has four terminals, the third (and largest) opened on 27 April 2009 and the Seasonal Flights Terminal opened on 20 September 2011. Terminal 2 was closed in April 2010 for major renovation works and was reopened on 28 September 2016. A third parallel runway replaced the crossing runway in 2010. Runway 05L/23R is 3301 m long, 05C/23C has a length of 4000 m, and the new runway is designated as 05R/23L and is 3999 m long.

Terminal transfer

The MiniMetro people mover links Terminal 1, the AirMall, the multi-storey car park and Terminals 2 and 3. The main station is located between Terminals 2 and 3 and is an integral part of the bridge connecting the two terminals. An air-cushioned 1.85 km system with a top speed of 50 km/h was designed and constructed by Leitner-Poma.

Airport hotel

A luxury 350-room five-star Le Méridien hotel opened in front of Terminal 3 in December 2013. The hotel is linked to the terminal by a 230 m skyway that is also equipped with a moving walkway.

Statistics

The sharp decline in 2020 was caused by the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide and in Egypt.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

| Aegean Airlines | Athens | Aeroflot | Moscow–Sheremetyevo | Air Algérie | Addis Ababa | Air Arabia | Abha, Abu Dhabi, Bergamo, Dammam, Gassim, Ha'il, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, Jeddah, Jizan, Kuwait City, Muscat, Ras Al Khaimah, Riyadh, Sharjah, Tabuk, Ta'if | Air Cairo | Abha, Abu Simbel, Al Jawf, Amman–Queen Alia, Aswan, Bologna, Catania, Cologne/Bonn, Gassim, Hurghada, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, Jeddah, Jizan, Kuwait City, Luxor, Málaga, Marsa Alam, Milan–Malpensa, Riyadh, Rome–Fiumicino, Sharm El Sheikh, Sohag, Tabuk, Tangier, Yerevan Seasonal: Antalya, Verona | Air China | Beijing–Capital | Air Montenegro | Seasonal charter: Podgorica | AJet | Ankara, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen |Alexandria Airlines | Jeddah | Austrian Airlines | Vienna | Azerbaijan Airlines | Seasonal charter: Baku |British Airways|London-Heathrow | Condor | Frankfurt (begins 7 May 2026) | China Eastern Airlines | Shanghai–Pudong | Egyptair | Abidjan, Abu Dhabi, Abuja, Accra, Addis Ababa, Amman–Queen Alia, Amsterdam, Asmara, Aswan, Athens, Bahrain, Barcelona, Beijing–Capital, Benghazi, Berlin, Brussels, Budapest, Casablanca, Copenhagen, Dammam, Dar es Salaam, Delhi, Dhaka, Djibouti, Doha, Douala, Dubai–International, Dublin, Düsseldorf, El Kharga, Entebbe, Frankfurt, Gassim, Geneva, Hangzhou, Hurghada, Istanbul, Jakarta–Soekarno-Hatta, Jeddah, Johannesburg–O.R. Tambo, Juba, Kano, Kigali, Kinshasa–N'djili, Kuwait City, Lagos, Larnaca, London–Heathrow, Luxor, Madrid, Manchester, Marsa Alam, Milan–Malpensa, Misrata, Mogadishu, Moscow–Domodedovo, Mumbai–Shivaji, Munich, Muscat, Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta, N'Djamena, Newark, New York-JFK, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Port Sudan, Prague, Riyadh, Rome–Fiumicino, Shanghai–Pudong, Sharjah, Sharm El Sheikh, Tokyo–Narita, Toronto–Pearson, Tripoli–Mitiga, Venice (begins 29 June 2026), Vienna, Washington–Dulles, Zürich | Emirates | Dubai–International | Ethiopian Airlines | Addis Ababa | Etihad Airways | Abu Dhabi | Eurowings | Düsseldorf | Flyadeal | Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh Seasonal: Abha | FlyBaghdad | Najaf | Flynas | Dammam, Medina, Riyadh | Gulf Air | Bahrain | Hainan Airlines | Shenzhen | Iberia Express | Madrid | ITA Airways | Rome–Fiumicino | Jordan Aviation | Amman–Queen Alia | Libyan Airlines | Tripoli–Mitiga | LOT Polish Airlines | Warsaw–Chopin | Lufthansa | Frankfurt | Neos | Milan–Malpensa | Nesma Airlines | Al Jawf, Dammam, Kuwait City, Milan–Malpensa | Nile Air | Abha, Al Ain, Al Jawf, Arar, Aswan, Bergamo, Cologne/Bonn, Gassim, Ha'il, Hurghada, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, Jeddah, Jizan, Kuwait, Luxor, Najran, Neom Bay, Rome–Fiumicino, Sharjah, Sharm El Sheikh, Sohag, Stockholm–Arlanda, Tabuk, Ta'if, Yanbu | Qatar Airways | Doha | Rossiya Airlines| Sochi | Royal Air Maroc | Casablanca | Royal Jordanian | Amman–Queen Alia | Saudia | Jeddah, Neom Bay, Riyadh | SCAT Airlines | Şymkent | Sichuan Airlines | Beijing–Capital, Chengdu–Tianfu | Sudan Airways | Port Sudan | Smartwings | Seasonal charter: Prague | SunExpress | Seasonal: Antalya | Swiss International Air Lines | Zürich | TAROM | Bucharest–Otopeni | Transavia | Amsterdam, Lyon, Marseille, Paris–Orly | Turkish Airlines | Istanbul | Vueling | Barcelona, Paris–Orly | Yemenia | Mukhalla

Cargo

| Cargolux | Beirut, Luxembourg | DHL Aviation | Bahrain | Egyptair Cargo | Accra, Amman–Queen Alia, Brussels, Cologne/Bonn, Dammam, Dubai–Al Maktoum, Istanbul, Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo, Kano, Kuwait, Lagos, Lahore, Mauritius, Milan–Malpensa, Mumbai–Shivaji, N'Djamena, Ostend/Bruges, Riyadh, Sharjah | Emirates SkyCargo | Dubai–Al Maktoum | Ethiopian Airlines Cargo | Addis Ababa, Beirut, Liège | Lufthansa Cargo | Frankfurt | KLM Cargo | Amsterdam | Royal Jordanian Cargo | Amman–Queen Alia | Turkish Cargo | Istanbul

Ground transport

Limousines and shuttle buses

There are several ways to leave Cairo airport upon arrival. The most convenient way is by one of the numerous "limousine services". Pick-up points are in front of the terminals (curb side). The prices are fixed depending on the destination and the car category, but different providers may charge wildly different prices. Category A are luxury limousines (e.g. Mercedes-Benz E-Class), Category B are micro buses for up to seven passengers, Category C are midsized cars (e.g. Mitsubishi Lancer) and new Category D are London Taxis.

Public transport

A shuttle bus connects with all the passenger terminals and finally stops at the Cairo Airport Bus Terminal where public buses heading to other destinations in Cairo and connect frequently to major transportation hubs like Abbasia and Tahrir Square/Abdel-Moniem Riad bus terminus.

However, there were efforts by Transport for Cairo (TFC) to map the major bus routes and metro lines in Cairo. Having this map in hand is useful.

Also, scheduling and route information of both the public Cairo Transportation Authority (CTA) and Mwasalat Mirs (MM) buses are now readily available on Google Transit and can be accessed using the Google Maps app and website.

Taxi

With the exception of the so-called (and increasingly scarce) "Black and White" cabs, all regular Cairo taxis (colloquially known as the White taxi) are equipped with digital taxi meters. Taxi drivers in Cairo are legally required to switch on their taxi meters the moment they pick up a new client (See video on Mada Masr). However, some taxi drivers will try to either manipulate how the meter counts the distance driven (by electronically tampering with their meters).

Ride sharing

An affordable and reliable form of private transport readily available in Cairo are the popular ride-sharing mobile phone app based services such as Uber.

Car

The airport can be reached via Oroba Road from Heliopolis or via the new road, connecting Terminal 3 with the Cairo Ring Road and Suez Road interchange. The toll for driving into the airport grounds is approximately 30 EGP, depending on the type of the vehicle.

Note: Cairo-Suez road is part of the Arab Mashreq International Road Network, designated as the Motorway 50/M50. It connects Cairo to Suez, South Sinai through the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel under the Suez Canal, then to Israel via the Taba Border Crossing, Jordan via the Wadi Araba Crossing, to Saudi Arabia via Durra Border Crossing, and then finally into Iraq via the Arar border crossing where the road ends in the capital, Baghdad.

Accidents and incidents

• On 20 February 1956, a Transports Aériens Intercontinentaux Douglas DC-6B on a scheduled Saigon-Karachi-Cairo-Paris flight crashed on approach to Cairo airport, killing 52 of the 63 people on board.
• On 12 June 1961, KLM Flight 823, a Lockheed L-188 Electra crashed 4 km SE of Cairo Airport because of the pilot-in-command's inattention to his instruments. Three crew and 17 passengers were killed out of the 36 passengers and crew on board.
• On 15 May 1962, a United Arab Airlines Douglas DC-3 crashed shortly after takeoff for a cargo flight to Beirut. All three occupants died.
• On 19 March 1965, Vickers Viscount YI-ACU of Iraqi Airways was damaged beyond economic repair when it ran into a number of lamp standards after a hydraulic system failure.
• On 15 January 1968, Douglas DC-3 SU-AJG of United Arab Airlines departed on an international scheduled cargo flight to Beirut when the crew decided to return due to icing. The aircraft subsequently broke up in mid-air and crashed at Zefta, killing all four people on board. The cargo shifting in flight and the aircraft being 500 kg overloaded may have contributed to the accident.
• On 10 June 1986, an Air Sinai Fokker F-27 Friendship upon returning to Cairo crashed short of the runway while approaching in a sandstorm, colliding with the side of a building and catching fire. All five crew and 18 passengers out of the 26 on board were killed.
• On 31 March 1988, an Arax Airlines Douglas DC-8 crashed on its second takeoff attempt at the runway end because of an engine fire. All four occupants died.
• On 29 July 2011, EgyptAir Flight 667 caught fire while parked at the terminal just before its scheduled flight to Saudi Arabia. Everyone on board was able to quickly evacuate the aircraft.

Accolades

• 2010 – One of the three most improved airports by Skytrax World Airport Awards
• 2011 – Second Best Airport in Africa of the Airport Service Quality Awards by Airports Council International

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