Mariscal Sucre International Airport

Summary

Mariscal Sucre International Airport[3] (IATA: UIO, ICAO: SEQM) is an international airport serving Quito, Ecuador. It is the busiest airport in Ecuador. It is located in the Tababela parish, about 18 kilometres (11 mi)[4] east of Quito, and because of its location it is also colloquially known as Tababela Airport. The airport currently serves as the main hub for Avianca Ecuador and the largest hub for LATAM Ecuador. It also served as the main hub for TAME, Ecuador's flag-carrier, before the airline was liquidated by the Ecuadorian government in 2020.[5] The airport opened in February 2013 and replaced the 53-year old airport of the same name.[6] The airport is named after independence leader Antonio José de Sucre. It was the first 5-star airport in the Western Hemisphere as rated by Skytrax.[7][8][9]

Mariscal Sucre International Airport

Aeropuerto Internacional Mariscal Sucre
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorQuiport,[1] CORPAQ[2]
ServesQuito
LocationTababela, Quito Canton, Pichincha, Ecuador
OpenedFebruary 20, 2013; 11 years ago (2013-02-20)
Hub for
Focus city forAvianca
Elevation AMSL2,400 m / 7,874 ft
Coordinates0°06′48″S 78°21′31″W / 0.1133°S 78.3586°W / -0.1133; -78.3586
Websitewww.aeropuertoquito.com
www.aeropuertoquito.aero
Map
UIO is located in Ecuador
UIO
UIO
Location of airport in Ecuador
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
18/36 4,100 13,451 Pavement

The new Mariscal Sucre Int'l Airport covers 1,500 hectares (3,707 acres) which is ten times larger than the airport it replaced.[10]

Location edit

The new Quito International Airport is located on the Oyambaro plain near the town of Tababela, about 18 kilometers (11 mi) east of Quito, Ecuador. The location was chosen in order to expand the capacity of the city's airport.

The old airport posed enormous risks because it was located in the middle of a mountainous city with high wind currents. It could no longer be expanded to accommodate larger aircraft or increased air traffic, and had been the scene of numerous incidents and crashes during the latter years of its operation.[11][12]

History edit

 
A loading zone outside the airport
 
Check-in and departures area
 
Arrivals area
 
Departures screen
 
Boarding gates
 
TAME Embraer 190
 
Avianca Airbus A320
 
View from the international terminal
 
KLM flies daily to Quito and Guayaquil using the Boeing 777

Construction began in 2006.[13] A re-negotiation of the financing contract for the airport was signed on 9 August 2010.[14]

As part of final certification steps for the airport, Quito's mayor Augusto Barrera and around 100 other passengers left an early morning flight from nearby Mariscal Sucre International Airport on an American Airlines Boeing 757 on July 2, 2012.

The inaugural flight allowed officials to test the performance of check-in counters and other systems. The flight lasted nine minutes and the plane was met by a water cannon salute at the new airport. [citation needed]

The official inauguration was postponed from October, 2012, citing the progress of improvements to various access routes, the holiday season, and other factors. The new airport commenced operations on 20 February 2013 following the closure of the old airport the night before. The first flights scheduled to arrive at the new airport were TAME flight 302 from Guayaquil (domestic), and LAN flight 2590 from Lima, Peru (international). Arrival times were scheduled for 9:00 and 9:30 a.m. respectively.[15]

Airlines and destinations edit

 
Iberia Airbus A340-600 aircraft on its inaugural flight to Quito - Mariscal Sucre International Airport from Barajas on the 28th of October, 2013. Was the first transatlantic flight of the airport linked to Europe, celebrated with the traditional water cannon salute.

Passenger edit

AirlinesDestinations
Aeroméxico Mexico City
Aeroregional Coca, Cuenca, Loja, Manta, Machala, Panama City–Balboa
Air Europa Madrid1
American Airlines Miami
Arajet Santo Domingo–Las Américas
Avianca Bogotá
Avianca Costa Rica Buenos Aires–Ezeiza, San José (CR)
Avianca Ecuador Baltra, Bogotá, Cuenca, Guayaquil, Manta, Medellín–Córdova, New York–JFK, Orlando,[16] San Cristóbal
Avianca El Salvador San Salvador
Conviasa Caracas
Copa Airlines Panama City–Tocumen
Delta Air Lines Atlanta
Iberia Madrid
JetBlue Fort Lauderdale (ends June 13, 2024)[17]
JetSmart Perú Lima[18]
KLM Amsterdam2
LATAM Colombia Bogotá
LATAM Ecuador Bogotá, Coca, Cuenca, Guayaquil, Manta, Miami, San Cristóbal
LATAM Perú Lima
United Airlines Houston–Intercontinental

Notes:

  • 1: Air Europa's flight from Quito to Madrid makes a stop in Guayaquil.
  • 2: KLM's flight from Quito to Amsterdam makes a stop in Guayaquil.

Cargo edit

AirlinesDestinations
Aerosucre Bogota
Air Canada Cargo Miami, Montréal–Trudeau,[19] Toronto–Pearson[20]
Atlas Air[21] Campinas, Manaus, Mexico City–AIFA, Miami, New York–JFK, São Paulo–Guarulhos
Avianca Cargo Bogotá, Medellín–JMC, Miami
Cargolux Bogotá, Luxembourg
DHL Ecuador Guayaquil
Emirates SkyCargo Aguadilla
Ethiopian Airlines Cargo Addis Ababa, Bogotá, Chongqing,[22] Miami
FedEx Express Memphis
LATAM Cargo Chile Santiago de Chile
Martinair Amsterdam
Qatar Airways Cargo Doha, Liège, Miami
UPS Airlines Miami

Statistics edit

Annual traffic edit

Annual passenger traffic at UIO airport. See Wikidata query.
Passenger statistics
Year Total passengers Cargo (TM)
2001 400,900
2002 577,800 9,990.10
2003 609,900 10,000.80
2004 795,600 21,590.55
2005 825,300 26,556.20
2006 955,500 30,010.50
2007 1,771,859 35,256.40
2008 2,569,800 40,123.65
2009 3,000,560 40,996.60
2010 4,026,521 50,023.65
2011 5,000,500 70,785.09
2012 5,120,000 164,412.03
2013 5,421,106 215,036.88
2014 5,574,019 300,090.90
2015 5,376,544 301,400.10
2016 4,852,530 303,460.90
2017 4,875,166 312,112.90
2018 5,158,103 -
2019 5,037,650 -
2020 683,629 -
2021 1,198,780 -
2022 4,300,000 -

Top destinations edit

Busiest international routes (roundtrip) out of Mariscal Sucre International Airport (2020)[23]
Rank Change City Passengers % Change Top carriers
1   Panama City, Panama 103.710   -74,73% Copa Airlines
2   Bogotá, Colombia 92.107   -76,28% Avianca, Avianca Ecuador, Wingo
3   1 Madrid, Spain 85.815   -66,32% Air Europa, Iberia, Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas
4   1   Miami, United States 81.952   -61,61% American Airlines
5   2 Lima, Peru 53.609   -79,45% Avianca Ecuador, LATAM Ecuador
6   Mexico City, Mexico 53.410   -64,39% Aeroméxico, Interjet
7   3 Houston, United States 42.897   -49,39% United Airlines
8   1 Amsterdam, Netherlands 33.243   -67,22% KLM
9   1 Fort Lauderdale, United States 32.166   -72,85% JetBlue Airways
10   3 Atlanta, United States 28.250   -77,99% Delta Air Lines
Busiest domestic routes from Mariscal Sucre International Airport (2020)[23]
Rank Change City Passengers % Change Top carriers
1   Guayaquil, Guayas 411.923   -69,72% Aeroregional, Avianca Ecuador, LATAM Ecuador, TAME
2   Cuenca, Azuay 113.817   -69,04% Aeroregional, LATAM Ecuador, TAME
3   Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands 74.295   -73,07% Avianca Ecuador, LATAM Ecuador, TAME
4   Manta, Manabí 42.532   -72,39% Avianca Ecuador, LATAM Ecuador, TAME
5   Loja, Loja 41.188   -62,47% Aeroregional, TAME
6   El Coca, Orellana 33.703   -68,03% Avianca Ecuador, LATAM Ecuador, TAME
7   San Cristóbal, Galápagos Islands 22.219   -72,04% Avianca Ecuador, LATAM Ecuador, TAME
8   1 Machala, El Oro 9.143   -78,75% TAME
9   1 Lago Agrio, Sucumbíos 6.502   -85,41% TAME
10   Esmeraldas, Esmeraldas 4.527   -88,44% TAME

See also edit

Notes edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Aeropuerto Mariscal Sucre - Home". Archived from the original on June 7, 2015. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  2. ^ Empresa Publica Metropolitana de Servicios Aeroportuarios Archived December 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Se develó la placa con el nombre del aeropuerto de Quito". Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  4. ^ "Un nouvel aéroport international pour Quito" [A new international airport for Quito] (in French). Air Journal. February 22, 2013. Archived from the original on February 26, 2013.
  5. ^ TAME (February 17, 2021). "Communication to our suppliers". Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  6. ^ "New Quito Airport officially inaugurated by Ecuadorean President; operational from 09:00 20-Feb-2013". Centre for Aviation. February 21, 2013. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014.
  7. ^ Skytrax (May 11, 2020). "Quito Mariscal Sucre International Airport is Certified with the 5-Star Regional Airport Rating". Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  8. ^ Skytrax (May 11, 2020). "Quito International Airport reaches the premier category in the world". Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  9. ^ Plaisted, James (January 7, 2022). "Houston William P. Hobby Airport is the first 5-Star Airport in North America". Skytrax. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  10. ^ "Facts About Mariscal Sucre Int'l Airport". airport-technology.com. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  11. ^ Report Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine on the conditions of the current airport and the benefits of a new airport (Inter-American Development Bank)
  12. ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Tupolev 154M CU-T1264 Quito-Mariscal Sucre Airport (UIO)". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. November 13, 2005. Archived from the original on February 20, 2009. Retrieved April 8, 2009.
  13. ^ Pereira Lima, Edvaldo (February 25, 2013). "Ecuador's new Quito airport opens". Air Transport World. Archived from the original on February 27, 2013.
  14. ^ "Ecuador Officially Signs New Quito Airport Finance Deal". Wall Street Journal. August 10, 2010. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
  15. ^ "Tababela se inaugurará con 129 vuelos". Archived from the original on February 22, 2013. Retrieved February 19, 2013.
  16. ^ "Avianca Ecuador anuncia vuelos directos a Orlando » Nicolás Larenas". August 22, 2023.
  17. ^ https://onemileatatime.com/news/jetblue-cancels-unprofitable-routes/
  18. ^ "JetSMART Peru Schedules Ecuador Launch in 1H24". Aeroroutes. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  19. ^ "Air Canada Cargo - Widebody Schedule". Retrieved October 17, 2020.
  20. ^ "Air Canada announces routes for expanded cargo capacity". June 14, 2021.
  21. ^ "Atlas Air Schedule". Atlas Air. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  22. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines puts Chongqing on freighter map". July 10, 2019.
  23. ^ a b "https://www.ecuadorencifras.gob.ec/transporte/"

External links edit

  • New Quito International Airport: Main Information. Quiport Corporation. Retrieved April 12, 2009.
  • Quito Airport Hotel.
  • New Airport: A Door to Development. Corpaq - Quito Airport Corporation. Retrieved April 12, 2009.
  • Paco Moncayo Gallegos, ed. (2008). El nuevo aeropuerto de Quito, documentos para la historia (PDF) (in Spanish). Quito, Ecuador: Alcaldía Metropolitana. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 12, 2008.
  • Wikivoyage: Tababela