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Pago Pago Airport
Airport Directory » American Samoa » Pago Pago » Pago Pago AirportAirport information for Pago Pago AirportCountry: American SamoaLocation: Pago Pago Coordinates: 14.20.00S / 170.43.00W IATA Code: PPG Timezone: GMT -11 Direct flights form Pago Pago Airport Direct flights to Pago Pago Airport Find connecting flights to Pago Pago Airport Find connecting flights from Pago Pago Airport |
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Pago Pago International Airport (IATA: PPG, ICAO: NSTU, FAA LID: PPG), also bring up to as Tafuna Airport (or Tafuna International Airport) or Pago Pago International with airport appellative PPG is a public airport turn up 3 land mile (5 kilometre) southwestward of the central downtown of Pago Pago, in the small town and bushes of Tafuna on the island of Tutuila in American Samoa, an unincorporated district of the United States.
Pago Pago International Airport was 1st used for commercial trans pacific air service in the mid to late 1950s. It was 1st used for lay to rest island air service between Faleolo, Western Samoa and Pago Pago in 1959 by new characteristic, Apia-based Polynesian Airlines and short-lived, Pago Pago-based Samoan Airways, using the original armed forces installations and ex-military DC-3 type aircraft. Pago Pago International Airport went through a major re-construction in 1963 under the U.S. President Kennedy disposal and was opened to jet plane service in 1964 to excite touristry and the local economic system. A new depot construction was build. The original armed forces build landing track 14/32 was repositioned and constructed to get landing track 5/23 with a paved length of 9,000 foot. New taxi strip and macadamise area were also build.
South Pacific jet plane service between Sydney (Australia), Auckland (New Zealand), Honolulu (Hawaii) and Papeete (Tahiti) were 1st offered by Pan American World Airways in 1964 with Boeing 707 aircraft. Air New Zealand come after with DC-8 Service via Pago Pago to Auckland as did American Airlines in the early 70s with Boeing 707 aircraft. The airport was a vital link up to the Samoan Islands until the landing track at Faleolo International Airport in Independent Samoa was better and continued to deal bigger than Boeing 737 type aircraft in 1984. With those improvements, international airline traffic set about to switch from Pago Pago to Faleolo airport.
Runway 8/26 was unimproved and non-functional for aircraft in the 1960's and early 1970s. In the late 1970s after a 2nd enlargement and redevelopment to the 1960s depot construction begin, monetary funding and rehabilitation of landing track 5/23 happed. Today, Runway 8/26 is widely used for air cab operators winging to Apia, Ofu or Tau.
To alleviate aircraft with big load demands and long-distance call voyages, landing track 5/23 was spread out in early 2001 from an original landing track length of 9,000 foot to the current 10,000 foot.
Pago Pago International Airport had some historic significance with the U.S. Apollo space programme. The Astronauts of Apollo 10, 12, 13, 14 and 17 were found a few one C land mile from Pago Pago and transported by eggbeater to the airport prior to being winged dorsum to Honolulu on C-141 starlifter armed forces aircraft.
Pago Pago International Airport is owned and functioned by the American Samoa Government.
History
The location and place of the current airport was known then as Tafuna Airfield. It was division of U.S. Naval Station Tutuila and was partly build before conflict break out in the Pacific on December 7, 1941. The landing strip were finished and opened on March 17, 1942.
On March 19, 1942 U.S. Marine air unit VMF-111 arrived come after by VMO-151 (SBC-45) which were ground at Tafuna Airfield throughout World War II. The original landing track were compass bearing 9/27 (6,080 foot x 500 foot) and 14/32 (3,000 foot x 200 foot) and were made of compact coral. The independent depot field constructions, a big depot and control tower were turn up at the border of currently's landing track 8/26 and at what is currently the Tafuna Industrial Park area .
A Bomber and scrapper landing strip was also build during the same time period in the small town of Leone, known then as Leone Airfield. It was located on what is currently Leone High School and Midkiff Elementary School on the western border of Tutuila Island. Leone Airfield was 6,000 foot x 500 foot and had a short life during the conflict. Remanence of Leone Airfield is able to be seen from the air with a straight clearance route set about from the WVUV-AM wireless tower to Midkiff Elementary School.
Facilities and aircraft
Pago Pago International Airport covers an area of 700 acres (283 ha) which incorporates 2 active landing track:
- Runway 5/23: 10,000 x 150 foot (3,048 x 46 m), Surface: Asphalt
- Runway 8/26: 3,800 x 75 foot (1,158 x 23 m), Surface: Asphalt
For 12-month time period finish June 12, 2007, the airport had 14,043 aircraft functioning, an mean of 39 per solar day: 93% air cab, 4% scheduled commercial, 2% armed forces and 1% civil aviation.
Original article.