| Suai Airport Commander in Chief of FALINTIL, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, International Airport | |
| Iata: | UAI |
| Icao: | WPDB |
| Type: | Public |
| Owner-Oper: | Government of East Timor |
| City-Served: | Suai, Cova Lima, East Timor |
| Location: | , Suai |
| Elevation-F: | 96 |
| Elevation-M: | 29 |
| Coordinates: | -9.3039°N 125.2869°W |
| Pushpin Map: | East Timor#Timor |
| Pushpin Map Alt: | Location of airport in East Timor##Location of airport in Timor |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of airport in East Timor##Location of airport in Timor |
| Pushpin Relief: | y |
| Pushpin Label: | UAI/WPDB |
| Metric-Rwy: | y |
| R1-Number: | 16/34 |
| R1-Length-M: | 1,500 |
| R1-Length-F: | 4,921 |
| R1-Surface: | Asphalt |
| Footnotes: | Sources: AIP Timor-Leste,[1] DAFIF,[2] WFP[3] |
Suai Airport, officially Commander in Chief of FALINTIL, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, International Airport (Portuguese: Aeroporto Internacional Comandante-Chefe das FALINTIL, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão,), and also known as Covalima Airport, is an airport serving Suai, in Cova Lima Municipality, East Timor.[4] [5] [6] [7]
The airport is located east of Suai, in the southwestern corner of the suco of, which is part of the Suai administrative post.[8] The airport's runway (16/34) is oriented broadly north-south.[1] [3]
As of 1974 and 1975, Transportes Aéreos de Timor (TAT), the national airline of the then Portuguese Timor, was operating scheduled domestic services from Dili to Covalima/Suai.[9] [10]
In April 1983, an Indonesian State-owned airline, Merpati Nusantara Airlines, started operating a Kupang–Dili––Covalima/Suai flight.[11] In 1985, that service was being flown twice a week.[11] As of the mid 1990s, Merpati was still flying into Covalima/Suai,[12] and in mid 1999, Merpati was operating one flight a week on a Dili–Covalima/Suai–Kupang routing, using an Indonesian-built CASA turboprop aircraft.[13]
When the Indonesian occupation of East Timor came to an end later that year, the runway at Suai was still only very short.[13] During the ensuing INTERFET peacemaking operation, the 17th Construction Squadron of the Australian Army upgraded the airport to support all-weather operations by Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft. The runway was extended by, and a turning node added. Hard stands were provided, along with accommodation, workshops and five helipads.[14]
At around that time, the terminal was remodelled and fitted with air conditioning.[15]
In the lead-up to the airport's upgrading in the mid 2010s, its runway was an 'all weather' asphalt strip long and wide that could accommodate aircraft as large as a C-130. In general, the airport was for day time use only, but helicopter operations could be supported at night.[15]
East Timor's national Strategic Development Plan 2011-2030 identified a need to extend and refurbish the runway and build new modern facilities.[4]
After a significant upgrading, the airport in its present form was officially inaugurated on 20 June 2017, and named in honour of East Timorese resistance leader and statesman Xanana Gusmão.[4] [16] [17] The facilities added during the upgrading included a new sealed runway, a terminal building, a control tower, hangars for five large helicopters and fire fighting equipment.[17] The Indonesian State-owned enterprise PT Waskita Karya carried out the upgrading, at a total cost of .[18]
On 28 September 2018, the airport hosted its first international arrival, a charter flight from Darwin, Australia, operated by Northern Oil & Gas Australia (NOGA).[19]
, the airport was barely being used,[20] and usually had no more than one flight a day.[21]
As upgraded, the airport has modern facilities complying with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards for the safe operation of airplanes, light aircraft and helicopters. The facilities include a runway, a terminal building, a control tower, a fire station, a meteorological station and a helipad with medevac air ambulance capability.[4] [16]