| Rabat–Salé Airport | |
| Iata: | RBA |
| Icao: | GMME |
| Pushpin Map: | Morocco |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of airport in Morocco |
| Pushpin Label: | RBA |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Type: | Public / military |
| Operator: | ONDA |
| City-Served: | Salé and Rabat, Morocco |
| Location: | Salé, Morocco |
| Elevation-F: | 276 |
| Elevation-M: | 84 |
| Coordinates: | 34.0514°N -6.7514°W |
| Metric-Rwy: | y |
| R1-Number: | 03/21 |
| R1-Length-M: | 3,500 |
| R1-Length-F: | 11,483 |
| R1-Surface: | Asphalt |
| Stat-Year: | 2023 |
| Stat1-Header: | Passengers |
| Stat1-Data: | 1 201 676 |
| Stat2-Header: | Passenger change 2022-2023 |
| Stat2-Data: | +38.01% |
| Footnotes: | Source: DAFIF[1] |
Salé Airport or Rabat–Salé Airport is an international airport located in the city of Salé, also serving Rabat, the capital city of Morocco and of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region. It is a joint use public and military airport, also hosting the First Air Base of the Royal Moroccan Air Force. The airport is located about 8km (05miles) east-northeast of Rabat and about 90km (60miles) northeast of Casablanca.
During World War II, the airport was used as a military airfield by both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces. The 319th Bombardment Group briefly flew B-26 Marauders from the airfield between 25 April and 1 June 1943. After the Americans moved out their combat units in mid-1943, the airport was used as a stopover and landing field for Air Transport Command aircraft on the Casablanca-Algiers transport route. When the war ended, control of the airfield was returned to civil authorities.
During the early years of the Cold War, the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command (SAC) used the airport as headquarters for its 5th and 316th Air Divisions. Various SAC aircraft, primarily B-47 Stratojets and KC-97 Stratofreighters used the airport until the United States Air Force withdrew from Morocco in 1957.
On 20 January 2012 the new Terminal 1 building was inaugurated, and the old terminal building (always called Terminal 2) closed. The terminal is 16,000 m2 large and has a maximum capacity of 3.5 million passengers/year,[2] more than twice the capacity of the old terminal.[3]
The public area (arrivals exit and check-in) offers car rental agencies, banks (for Tax Free Shopping reimbursements only), ATM, café-bar with small kiosk, phone/fax service. The departure lounge offers a café-bar, duty-free shop, telephones, smoking lounge. Access to the airport is possible by taxi or bus or private car; parking space is available.
Rabat–Salé is one of the six airports in Morocco where ONDA offers its special VIP service Salon Convives de Marque.[4]
The freight-terminal covers an area of 1360 m2.
In 2018, expansion work began in the airport.[5] It is estimated that after the expansion the airport will be able to host 4 million passengers.
An area of 84.000 m2 is available for passenger aircraft offering four jetways and 10 stands. The stands can receive 1 × Boeing 747, 3 × Boeing 737, 2 × Airbus A310 and 4 × Airbus A320.
The single runway lies in direction 03/21, and is 3,500 meters long and 45 meters wide. The airport has an ILS Class 1 certification and offers the following radionavigational aids: VOR, DME, and NDB.[3]
The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Rabat–Salé Airport:
To get from the airport to city center Rabat: