Wajir Airport
| Wajir Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public, Civilian | ||||||||||
| Owner | Kenya Airports Authority | ||||||||||
| Serves | Wajir | ||||||||||
| Location |
Wajir County,  Kenya
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| Elevation AMSL | 770 ft / 235 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 01°43′48″N 40°05′24″E / 1.73000°N 40.09000°E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
 WJR
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2013) | |||||||||||
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| Passenger numbers | 82,440 |
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Wajir Airport is an international airport in Wajir County, Kenya.
Wajir Airport (IATA: WJR, ICAO: HKWJ) is located in Wajir town. Traditionally inhabited by ethnic Somalis, the area lies near the Jubbada Hoose region of southern Somalia.
By air, Wajir Airport is situated approximately 490 kilometres (300 mi) northeast of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Kenya's largest civilian airport.
Situated 235 metres (771 ft) above sea level, the airport has a single asphalt runway measuring 2,802 metres (9,193 ft) in length. The geographical coordinates of this airport are: 1° 43' 48.00"N, 40° 5' 24.00"E (latitude:1.73000; longitude:40.09000).
The Wajir Airport was built by an Israeli construction Company HZ between 1977 and 1978, as a military airbase for the Kenya Air Force.
In November 2006, the Kenyan government decided to suspend direct scheduled flights to and from Somalia owing to security concerns vis-a-vis the then existing Islamic Courts Union. Following pressure by politically influential Somali traders to resume the cargo flights, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) lifted its suspension a few months later in August 2007. It also indicated that all flights should thereafter stop at the Wajir Airport for customs, immigration and security screening before continuing onto their final destination. The Kenyan authorities subsequently outsourced the construction of a new terminal in the airport and assigned KCAA, customs, immigration and security officials to operate in the facility. On 7 September 2007 the Wajir Airport was commissioned to officially accommodate both passenger and military flights.
In 2012, US Navy Seabees built a new tarmac runway that can take heavy aircraft.
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Wikipedia