Recife/Guararapes - Gilberto Freyre International Airport Aeroporto Internacional do Recife/Guararapes - Gilberto Freyre
Inside view of the airport.
IATA: REC – ICAO: SBRF
Summary
Airport type		Military/Public
Operator		Infraero
Serves		Recife
Elevation AMSL		33 ft / 10 m
Coordinates		08°07′35″S 34°55′24″W / 8.12639°S 34.92333°W / -8.12639; -34.92333Coordinates: 08°07′35″S 34°55′24″W / 8.12639°S 34.92333°W / -8.12639; -34.92333
Website		Infraero REC
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
18/36	10,875	3,315	Asphalt
Statistics (2009)
Passengers			5,250,565
Aircraft Operations			66,415
Metric tonnes of cargo			40,400
Statistics: Infraero Sources: Airport Website

Guararapes International Airport (IATA: REC, ICAO: SBRF), also known as Gilberto Freyre International Airport, is an international airport located in the city of Recife, Brazil. It serves domestic and international air traffic.

In 2009, the airport handled 5,249,831 passengers and 66,414 aircraft movements, placing it the 8 busiest airport in Brazil in terms of passengers and 5 busiest in terms of cargo (6 in terms of cargo plus mail).

History

The shopping and leisure area has been remodeled since July 2004, using the "Aeroshopping" concept, which transformed the airport into a center for office and commercial use in an area of 52,000 square meters. The commercial spaces will be occupied in stages and the final total will be 142 shops. The parking structure has been in use since December 2002. There are three levels with a total capacity for 2,080 vehicles, previously there were only 500 parking spaces. There is an events and exhibitions space located on the fourth level. The airport's capacity was expanded from 1.5 million to 5 million passengers a year which was almost fulfilled in 2008 with more than 4.6 million passengers. There are plans to increase capacity to 7.2 million. There is a pipeline running underneath carrying kerosene to fuel the airplanes, the safest way to do this because it does away with the need for tank trucks in the maneuvering area.

The airport is 1 km from Boa Viagem beach, 14 km from downtown and 25 km from Suape port.

In the vicinity of the airport is located Cindacta III, the Brazilian Integrated Air Traffic Control and Air Defense Center section 3.

Airlines and destinations

Accidents and incidents

• 1 November 1961: Panair do Brasil, a Douglas DC-7C registration PP-PDO flying from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro-Galeão via Sal and Recife, during its final approach at Recife, struck an 84m hill 2.7 km from the runway and broke-up. The aircraft was doing a night approach too low and outside the regular traffic pattern. All 45 passengers and crew died.
• 14 March 1970: Paraense, a Fairchild Hiller FH-227B registration PP-BUF flying from Recife to Belém, while on final approach to land at Belém, crashed into Guajará Bay. Of the 40 passengers and crew, 2 survived.
• 14 December 1987: Brazilian Air Force, a Lockheed C-130H Hercules registration FAB-2468, flying from Recife to Fernando de Noronha, crashed into the sea shortly before landing. All 29 crew and passengers died.
• 20 September 1990: a Embraer EMB110P1 Bandeirante registration PT-PAW belonging to the Government of Pernambuco, flying from Fernando de Noronha to Recife, crashed into the sea shortly after take-off. All 12 crew and passengers died.

Future developments

On 31 August 2009, Infraero unveiled a BRL8.75 million (USD4.6 million; EUR3.2 million) investiment plan to up-grade Guararapes International Airport focusing on the preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup which will be held in Brazil, Recife being one of the venue cities. The investment will be distributed at the conclusion of the renovation of the passenger terminal with installation of another 8 bridges to be completed in February 2010.

The content above was published at Airports-Worldwide.com in 2010.
We don't guarantee the information is fresh and accurate. The data may be wrong or outdated.
For more up-to-date information please refer to other sources.