Tunis–Carthage Airport Aéroport international de Tunis-Carthage مطار تونس قرطاج الدولي |
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Summary | |||||||||||||||
Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||
Operator | Tunisian Civil Aviation & Airports Authority | ||||||||||||||
Location | Tunis, Tunisia | ||||||||||||||
Hub for | |||||||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 22 ft / 7 m | ||||||||||||||
Coordinates | 36°51′04″N 010°13′38″E / 36.85111°N 10.22722°ECoordinates: 36°51′04″N 010°13′38″E / 36.85111°N 10.22722°E | ||||||||||||||
Map | |||||||||||||||
Location of airport in Tunisia | |||||||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||||||
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Statistics (2014) | |||||||||||||||
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Source: DAFIF
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Passengers | 5,146,000 |
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Tunis–Carthage Airport (French: Aéroport de Tunis-Carthage, Arabic: مطار تونس قرطاج الدولي, IATA: TUN, ICAO: DTTA) is the international airport of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. It serves as the home base for Tunisair, Tunisair Express, Nouvelair Tunisia, and Tunisavia. The airport is named for the historic city of Carthage, located just east of the airport.
The history of the airport dates back to 1920 when the first seaplane base in Tunisia was built on the Lake of Tunis for the seaplanes of Compagnie Aéronavale. The Tunis Airfield opened in 1938, serving around 5,800 passengers annually on the Paris-Tunis route.
During World War II, the airport was used by the United States Air Force Twelfth Air Force as a headquarters and command control base for the Italian Campaign of 1943. The following known units were assigned:
Once the combat units moved to Italy, Air Transport Command used the airport as a major transshipment hub for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel. It functioned as a stopover en route to Algiers airport or to Mellaha Field near Tripoli on the North African Cairo-Dakar transport route. Later, as the Allied forces advanced, it also flew personnel and cargo to Naples, Italy.