José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport

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José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport (Spanish: Aeropuerto Internacional José Joaquín de Olmedo; IATA: GYE, ICAO: SEGU) is an airport serving Guayaquil, a city in the province of Guayas in Ecuador. The airport was named after José Joaquín de Olmedo, a notable Ecuadorian poet, first mayor of the city of Guayaquil and former president of Ecuador. It was changed from Simón Bolívar International Airport, which is currently the name on the airports in Caracas, Venezuela, and Santa Marta, Colombia.

The airport is located 5 kilometres (3 mi) north of Guayaquil's centre, on the Avenida de las Américas, and has a runway with a length of 2,790 metres (9,154 ft), an elevation of 5 metres (16 ft), and can accommodate Boeing 747s, MD-11s and Airbus A340-600 aircraft. As of 9 February 2011, an airport exit tax was levied on all international tickets. However, it is no longer required to pay at the window when exiting the country, but the policy may change at a later time. It is the second busiest airport in Ecuador. On 31 July 2014 the airport domestic area was enlarged, now the airport is capable to handle up to 7.5 million passengers per year.

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History

The airport, which had the newest terminal in Ecuador, was renamed after José Joaquín de Olmedo in 2006, in preparation for the inauguration of the new 50,000 m² (540,000 sq ft) national and international terminal on 27 July 2006. Although there was an inaugural flight on 28 July 2006, most airlines did not operate completely from the new terminal until 13 August 2006. After that date, the old terminal was closed and it was later turned into a convention center.

The construction of the new terminal and expansion of the runway was finally decided in 2003-2004, years after making the decision that the current infrastructure was not sufficient to cover the city's needs, but that it was not yet commercially viable to build an entirely new airport in the Daular area.

The original project in 2003-2004 contemplated the construction of a 28,000 m² (300,000 sq ft) international terminal and the continuing operation of the old terminal, which would be left to handle only domestic flights. However, it was later decided that the newer 50,000 m² (540,000 sq ft) terminal would handle both national and international traffic, and the older terminal would be closed.

The airport is planned to serve the city of Guayaquil for 10 to 15 years starting in 2006. After this, it is expected to reach a capacity of 5 million passengers a year, and when this happens a new airport will be built in the Daular area, some 20 kilometers outside the city, near the highway that connects Guayaquil to Salinas and other coastal towns.

José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport was named "Best Airport in Latin America 2008 & 2009" by BusinessWeek and the second best in 2011. All domestic flights going from the Ecuadorean mainland into the Galapagos Islands make a stop in Guayaquil to refuel and pick up passengers due to its location, which is the closest point from Ecuador to the Galapagos Islands.

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Facilities

The airport resides at an elevation of 19 feet (6 m) above mean sea level and it has one runway designated 03/21 with an asphalt surface measuring 2,790 by 46 metres (9,154 by 151 ft).

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Airlines and destinations

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Accolades

• 2011 - 2nd Best Airport in Latin America - Caribbean of the Airport Service Quality Awards by Airports Council International and Best Airport by Size in the 2 to 5 million passenger category.

Source of the article : Wikipedia