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61-557: Kotoka International Airport ( IATA : ACC , ICAO : DGAA ) is an international airport in Accra , the capital of Ghana . The airport is operated by Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) , which has its offices on the airport property. Until the upgrading of the Tamale and Kumasi airports to international standards, KIA, for a longtime, was the sole international airport in Ghana. In 2023,

122-554: A PCR test in their country of origin no more than 72 hours prior to departure, and also undergo a further rapid antigen test upon arrival at Kotoka International Airport. A laboratory was set up at the airport for prompt processing of test results. The cost of the tests were set at US$ 50 for citizens of ECOWAS countries, and US$ 150 for all other citizens. Those testing negative on both tests were permitted to enter Ghana without any further quarantine or restrictions, subject to clearance by Ghana Immigration Service . In February 2021,

183-619: A tripartite partnership with Ethiopian Airlines and ASKY to offer seamless travel within the West African region. In October 2019, AWA and Brussels Airlines concluded an interline partnership to connect passengers through their joint networks. AWA and Air Burkina announced in January 2020 that they had concluded a partnership for passengers to connect from Ouagadougou through Accra to Lagos , Abuja and Abidjan. Africa World Airlines and Cabo Verde Airlines also announced

244-493: A few hundred combinations; a three-letter system of airport codes was implemented. This system allowed for 17,576 permutations, assuming all letters can be used in conjunction with each other. Since the U.S. Navy reserved "N" codes, and to prevent confusion with Federal Communications Commission broadcast call signs , which begin with "W" or "K", the airports of certain U.S. cities whose name begins with one of these letters had to adopt "irregular" airport codes: This practice

305-689: A further five aircraft between 2016 and 2019. All these aircraft were previously operated by Tianjin Airlines which is a sister company within the HNA Group . AWA was the largest operator of the Embraer 145 type in the Middle East and Africa region, but operational constraints have left the fleet with only 4 airworthy aircraft as of September 2022. Africa World Airlines stated that it intended to introduce two additional ERJ-145s in 2021, as well as

366-552: A larger capacity aircraft type at the appropriate time to expand its regional routes. In 2019, a three-way MoU was signed between COMAC , CAD Fund and AWA to promote the launch of the ARJ-21 aircraft in the African market, although no specific timeline was given for the introduction of this type. Africa World Airlines operated the following scheduled services as of August 2022. On 15 April 2021, Africa World Airlines conducted

427-421: A need to refocus operations away from lower yielding international routes as one of his priorities. As of June 2024 , Africa World Airlines operates the following aircraft: Africa World Airlines took delivery on 30 August 2012 of its first Embraer 145 aircraft that was used to operate domestic routes. A second aircraft was delivered on 8 September 2012. The airline added a third aircraft in 2013 and

488-567: A new airport is built, replacing the old one, leaving the city's new "major" airport (or the only remaining airport) code to no longer correspond with the city's name. The original airport in Nashville, Tennessee, was built in 1936 as part of the Works Progress Administration and called Berry Field with the designation, BNA. A new facility known as Nashville International Airport was built in 1987 but still uses BNA. This

549-629: A partnership effective from February 2020 to improve connectivity in West Africa between their respective networks. In May 2022, AWA and Kenya Airways announced an expansion of their partnership to enhance West African connectivity between the two airlines over AWA's hub at Kotoka International Airport in Accra. Africa World Airlines has been recognised as "Domestic Airline of the Year" in Ghana every year consecutively since 2015. In September 2019,

610-509: Is GSN and its IATA code is SPN, and some coincide with IATA codes of non-U.S. airports. Canada's unusual codes—which bear little to no similarity with any conventional abbreviation to the city's name—such as YUL in Montréal , and YYZ in Toronto , originated from the two-letter codes used to identify weather reporting stations in the 1930s. The letters preceding the two-letter code follow

671-510: Is a Ghanaian airline company that was incorporated in 2010 and commenced flights in 2012. It has its head office in Airport City Accra , and its main hub at Kotoka International Airport in Accra. It is the largest airline in Ghana with over 600,000 passengers booked in 2022, accounting for 55% of domestic passengers and 20% of all air passengers in the country. The airline has been consistently profitable since 2014. AWA

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732-467: Is a joint venture between Ghanaian shareholders SAS Finance Group and SSNIT , with minority shareholdings also by both HNA Group and China-Africa Development Fund via Zhongjia Investments of China. AWA was born as the brainchild of noted Ghanaian investment banker and traditional leader Togbe Afede XIV . The airline received its Air Carrier License from Ghana Civil Aviation Authority on 4 March 2011. After securing funding and partnership for

793-586: Is different from the name in English, yet the airport code represents only the English name. Examples include: Due to scarcity of codes, some airports are given codes with letters not found in their names: The use of 'X' as a filler letter is a practice to create three-letter identifiers when more straightforward options were unavailable: Some airports in the United States retained their NWS ( National Weather Service ) codes and simply appended an X at

854-513: Is in conjunction to rules aimed to avoid confusion that seem to apply in the United States, which state that "the first and second letters or second and third letters of an identifier may not be duplicated with less than 200 nautical miles separation." Thus, Washington, D.C. area's three airports all have radically different codes: IAD for Washington–Dulles , DCA for Washington–Reagan (District of Columbia Airport), and BWI for Baltimore (Baltimore–Washington International, formerly BAL). Since HOU

915-543: Is not followed outside the United States: In addition, since three letter codes starting with Q are widely used in radio communication, cities whose name begins with "Q" also had to find alternate codes, as in the case of: IATA codes should not be confused with the FAA identifiers of U.S. airports. Most FAA identifiers agree with the corresponding IATA codes, but some do not, such as Saipan , whose FAA identifier

976-603: Is presently no longer in use but will be redeveloped into an FBO . Terminal 3 has the capacity for large aircraft such as the Airbus A380 . The airport has been recognized as the "Best Airport in Africa" (2-5 million pax per annum) for 2019, 2020 and 2021 by Airports Council International . The airport was originally a military airport used by the British Royal Air Force during World War II. The facility

1037-546: Is promoted by Ghana Airports Company Limited on the principle that airports have ceased to be mere terminals, but rather economic growth outlets to promote trade and generate employment. Developments within Airport City include retail outlets such as Marina Mall , hotels such as Accra Marriott Hotel , ibis Styles Accra and Holiday Inn Accra Airport , as well as corporate offices for companies such as Africa World Airlines and Vodafone Ghana . Projects underway include

1098-416: Is used for William P. Hobby Airport , the new Houston–Intercontinental became IAH. The code BKK was originally assigned to Bangkok–Don Mueang and was later transferred to Suvarnabhumi Airport , while the former adopted DMK. The code ISK was originally assigned to Gandhinagar Airport (Nashik's old airport) and later on transferred to Ozar Airport (Nashik's current airport). Shanghai–Hongqiao retained

1159-758: The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and President Jair Bolsonaro in July 2020, for assisting with the repatriation of Brazilian citizens from 7 countries in West Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. Africa World Airlines was the recipient of the Tower Award for "Best African Airline Connectivity (Regional)" at the Aviators Africa conference in October 2021. The airline won the award for

1220-571: The Canadian transcontinental railroads were built, each station was assigned its own two-letter Morse code : When the Canadian government established airports, it used the existing railway codes for them as well. If the airport had a weather station, authorities added a "Y" to the front of the code, meaning "Yes" to indicate it had a weather station or some other letter to indicate it did not. When international codes were created in cooperation with

1281-740: The Ghana Air Force . It hosts a squadron of Airbus C295 transport aircraft, as well as a helicopter squadron with Harbin Z-9 and Mil Mi-17 utility helicopters. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , domestic flights in Ghana were suspended from 30 March 2020, but resumed on 1 May 2020 under enhanced sanitary protocols. Ghana was the first African country to resume domestic flights after a COVID-related suspension. The international air borders of Ghana reopened for travelers on 1 September 2020, subject to certain conditions. Passengers were required to undergo

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1342-512: The five-star Pullman Accra Airport City by Accor and the Protea Hotel by Marriott Accra Airport . International airlines such as American Airlines , Brussels Airlines and Turkish Airlines also have their ticketing and sales offices located within Airport City. Airport City is expected to host multiple stations on the proposed Accra Sky Train system. The airport shares its facilities with Air Force Base Accra , an installation of

1403-481: The list of Amtrak station codes . Airport codes arose out of the convenience that the practice brought pilots for location identification in the 1930s. Initially, pilots in the United States used the two-letter code from the National Weather Service (NWS) for identifying cities. This system became unmanageable for cities and towns without an NWS identifier, and the use of two letters allowed only

1464-507: The Ghana Airport Cargo Center, a 10,000 sq.m dedicated cargo warehouse facility supplemented by 9,000 sq.m of office space, in partnership with Ghana Airports Company Limited and Swissport . The activity of passengers, cargo and flight movements through the airport each year is given in the table below : Airport City Accra is an urban development centered around Kotoka International Airport. The development

1525-523: The IATA Airline Coding Directory. IATA provides codes for airport handling entities, and for certain railway stations. Alphabetical lists of airports sorted by IATA code are available. A list of railway station codes , shared in agreements between airlines and rail lines such as Amtrak , SNCF , and Deutsche Bahn , is available. However, many railway administrations have their own list of codes for their stations, such as

1586-477: The U.S. For example, several airports in Alaska have scheduled commercial service, such as Stebbins and Nanwalek , which use FAA codes instead of ICAO codes. Thus, neither system completely includes all airports with scheduled service. Some airports are identified in colloquial speech by their IATA code. Examples include LAX and JFK . Africa World Airlines Africa World Airlines Limited ( AWA )

1647-481: The United States, because "Y" was seldom used in the United States, Canada simply used the weather station codes for its airports, changing the "Y" to a "Z" if it conflicted with an airport code already in use. The result is that most major Canadian airport codes start with "Y" followed by two letters in the city's name (for example, YOW for O tta w a , YWG for W innipe g , YYC for C algar y , or YVR for V ancouve r ), whereas other Canadian airports append

1708-634: The airline took delivery of its seventh and eight aircraft in 2018 and 2019 respectively. The airline was the largest international carrier operating to Nigeria by 2019 with 200 monthly frequencies to both Lagos and Abuja . AWA consolidated its position as the premier airline in Anglophone West Africa with its dominance of the Nigerian regional travel market, and its numerous partnerships with international airlines. AWA temporarily suspended passenger operations on 30 March 2020 due to

1769-598: The airline was inducted into the CIMG Hall of Fame after being voted the winner in the "Domestic Airline of the Year" category for five consecutive years. Africa World Airlines was also recognised as "Best Airline in West Africa" for 2019 by the Balafon Travel Awards being held during the Accra Weizo 2019 travel conference and exhibition. In April 2019, AWA was recognised by Embraer for providing

1830-440: The airport itself instead of the city it serves, while another code is reserved which refers to the city itself which can be used to search for flights to any of its airports. For instance: Or using a code for the city in one of the major airports and then assigning another code to another airport: When different cities with the same name each have an airport, they need to be assigned different codes. Examples include: Sometimes,

1891-477: The airport served a record of 3.1 million passengers, a recovery from the 1.2 million in 2020 (reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic ). It presently serves as a hub for domestic and regional operator Africa World Airlines , and a base for domestic operator Passion Air . The airport consists of two passenger terminals, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3. Terminal 2 serves only domestic flights, while Terminal 3 serves regional, international, and long-haul operators. Terminal 1

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1952-418: The airport's former name, such as Orlando International Airport 's MCO (for Mc C o y Air Force Base), or Chicago's O'Hare International Airport , which is coded ORD for its original name: Or char d Field. In rare cases, the code comes from the airport's unofficial name, such as Kahului Airport 's OGG (for local aviation pioneer Jimmy H ogg ). In large metropolitan areas, airport codes are often named after

2013-630: The airport. The airline saw significant staff turnover and changes during the period immediately following the pandemic, with both COO Mendis and CEO Luo exiting the company for the second time at the expiry of their contracts in 2020 and 2022 respectively, and Yingli Zhou taking over as the new Chief Executive. The airline faced significant operational issues that led to the grounding of three aircraft and forced them to suspend flights to Abidjan , Freetown and Monrovia . Increased competition from Passion Air also led to an erosion of AWA's previously dominant domestic market share during 2022. Zhou has cited

2074-502: The code SHA, while the newer Shanghai–Pudong adopted PVG. The opposite was true for Berlin : the airport Berlin–Tegel used the code TXL, while its smaller counterpart Berlin–Schönefeld used SXF; the Berlin Brandenburg Airport has the airport code BER, which is also part of its branding. The airports of Hamburg (HAM) and Hannover (HAJ) are less than 100 nautical miles (190 km) apart and therefore share

2135-402: The end of 2020. AWA received the second highest score among all African airlines for their COVID-19 safety protocols as assessed by independent watchdog Safe Travel Barometer. In 2021, AWA once again booked over 600,000 passengers, thus almost matching the record traffic levels seen in 2019. AWA failed to restart flights to Wa after the COVID-19 related disruptions, citing safety concerns at

2196-934: The end. Examples include: A lot of minor airfields without scheduled passenger traffic have ICAO codes but not IATA codes, since the four letter codes allow more number of codes, and IATA codes are mainly used for passenger services such as tickets, and ICAO codes by pilots. In the US, such airfields use FAA codes instead of ICAO. There are airports with scheduled service for which there are ICAO codes but not IATA codes, such as Nkhotakota Airport/Tangole Airport in Malawi or Chōfu Airport in Tokyo, Japan. There are also several minor airports in Russia (e.g., Omsukchan Airport ) which lack IATA codes and instead use internal Russian codes for booking. Flights to these airports cannot be booked through

2257-571: The first ever test flight by a jet aircraft to Ho Airport in the Volta Region of Ghana. The airline stated that they intended to commence scheduled services between Ho and Accra shortly thereafter. However, in March 2022, AWA confirmed that it had decided not to launch flights on this route due to operational challenges. In August 2022, AWA made the decision to suspend all flights to Freetown and Monrovia due to operational constraints. Coming on

2318-557: The first three letters of the city in which it is located, for instance: The code may also be a combination of the letters in its name, such as: Sometimes the airport code reflects pronunciation, rather than spelling, namely: For many reasons, some airport codes do not fit the normal scheme described above. Some airports, for example, cross several municipalities or regions, and therefore, use codes derived from some of their letters, resulting in: Other airports—particularly those serving cities with multiple airports—have codes derived from

2379-430: The fleet up to six. New services to Abuja and Monrovia were launched. AWA became a full member of IATA in 2017, following the completion of its second IOSA audit. The airline is the only IATA member airline in Ghana. In 2018, Sean Mendis returned as COO after 6 years away. The airline launched flights to Freetown in 2018, Wa in 2019, and Abidjan in 2020. Michael Cheng Luo also returned as CEO in 2019 and

2440-476: The following airlines: In 2019, AWA signed a Memorandum of Understanding with South African Airways to jointly pursue opportunities in West Africa, including a system-wide codeshare agreement and other commercial partnerships. The codeshare went into effect in October 2019. The airline also announced an interline partnership with Emirates to provide domestic and regional feed to their flights at Kotoka International Airport in Accra . AWA also signed

2501-478: The following format: Most large airports in Canada have codes that begin with the letter "Y", although not all "Y" codes are Canadian (for example, YUM for Yuma, Arizona , and YNT for Yantai , China), and not all Canadian airports start with the letter "Y" (for example, ZBF for Bathurst, New Brunswick ). Many Canadian airports have a code that starts with W, X or Z, but none of these are major airports. When

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2562-597: The form of " YYZ ", a song by the rock band Rush , which utilizes the Morse code signal as a musical motif. Some airports have started using their IATA codes as brand names , such as Calgary International Airport (YYC) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR). Numerous New Zealand airports use codes that contain the letter Z, to distinguish them from similar airport names in other countries. Examples include HLZ for Hamilton , ZQN for Queenstown , and WSZ for Westport . Predominantly, airport codes are named after

2623-519: The heels of the cancellation of Abidjan services, it left AWA serving only destinations in Ghana and Nigeria as of September 2022. As a privately owned carrier, AWA does not make financial data available to the public. However, traffic statistics are published by the airline as well as Ghana Civil Aviation Authority and Ghana Airports Company Limited . Other figures have been made available via press reports, interviews and other publications. Africa World Airlines has interline agreements with

2684-540: The high costs of testing were likely to suppress passenger numbers for 2022 if not addressed as a priority. In response to this, the testing requirements for fully vaccinated passengers were waived effective 28 March 2022. IATA airport code The assignment of these codes is governed by IATA Resolution 763, and it is administered by the IATA's headquarters in Montreal , Canada. The codes are published semi-annually in

2745-551: The highest quality standard of fleet reliability data among all Embraer 145 operators worldwide. In October 2019, Africa World Airlines received the 2019 AviaTour award for "Best Passenger Experience". In December 2019, the prestigious Routes Africa Awards honored the airline with the Airline Excellence Award for "Innovation and Capacity Growth" in recognition for AWA's steady growth and creative marketing. AWA also received recognition and commendation from

2806-487: The international air booking systems or have international luggage transferred there, and thus, they are booked instead through the airline or a domestic booking system. Several heliports in Greenland have 3-letter codes used internally which might be IATA codes for airports in faraway countries. There are several airports with scheduled service that have not been assigned ICAO codes that do have IATA codes, especially in

2867-612: The name of the airport itself, for instance: This is also true with some cities with a single airport (even if there is more than one airport in the metropolitan area of said city), such as BDL for Hartford, Connecticut 's B ra dl ey International Airport or Baltimore's BWI, for B altimore/ W ashington I nternational Airport ; however, the latter also serves Washington, D.C. , alongside Dulles International Airport (IAD, for I nternational A irport D ulles) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA, for D istrict of C olumbia A irport). The code also sometimes comes from

2928-416: The one they are located in: Other airport codes are of obscure origin, and each has its own peculiarities: In Asia, codes that do not correspond with their city's names include Niigata 's KIJ , Nanchang 's KHN and Pyongyang 's FNJ . EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg , which serves three countries, has three airport codes: BSL, MLH, EAP. Some cities have a name in their respective language which

2989-402: The outbreak of Ebola in West Africa, but the airline nonetheless recorded its first annual profits in 2014. The airline continued to expand its domestic market share during this period, and focussed on training Ghanaian staff in technical roles such as pilots and engineers to reduce dependence on expatriates . In May 2015, AWA successfully completed its first IOSA audit, making it only

3050-457: The process of awarding the contract for testing at the airport to Frontiers Healthcare came under scrutiny for its lack of transparency during the vetting hearings for various ministers appointed to the second cabinet of President Nana Akufo-Addo . In March 2022, the parliamentary opposition threatened to demonstrate at the airport in protest against the continued high costs for on-arrival testing of passengers. Industry experts also warned that

3111-673: The project, the initial management team led by CEO Zhang Jiuhua and COO Sean Mendis proceeded with the technical certification of the airline. AWA took delivery of its first Embraer 145 aircraft in August 2012, immediately followed by a second aircraft in September 2012. It received its Air Operator Certificate on 21 September 2012 and commenced flight operations that same day with daily services between Accra and Kumasi . Flights to Tamale commenced later that year. By 2013, Zhang had been replaced by Michael Cheng Luo as CEO, and Mendis

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3172-506: The same first and middle letters, indicating that this rule might be followed only in Germany. Many cities retain historical names in their airport codes, even after having undergone an official name/spelling/transliteration change: Some airport codes are based on previous names associated with a present airport, often with a military heritage. These include: Some airports are named for an administrative division or nearby city, rather than

3233-526: The second airline in Ghana to achieve this international safety standard. In October 2015, Samuel Thompson took over from Apiigy Afenu as COO. AWA began the next phase of its expansion in December 2016, with the delivery of its fourth Embraer 145 aircraft. In 2017, John Xiaoyi Quan, former Managing Director of Air Guilin in China, took over as CEO. Two additional aircraft were also delivered in 2017 taking

3294-440: The spread of COVID-19 in Ghana. Domestic passenger operations resumed on 1 May 2020 under enhanced sanitary protocols, including disinfection of the aircraft after each flight. The airline continued to operate humanitarian flights to repatriate Ghanaians stranded abroad during the period of closed borders, and began a phased resumption of international flights from September 2020. Domestic traffic had recovered to 2019 levels by

3355-500: The station code of Malton, Mississauga , where it is located). YUL is used for Montréal–Trudeau (UL was the ID code for the beacon in the city of Kirkland , now the location of Montréal–Trudeau). While these codes make it difficult for the public to associate them with a particular Canadian city, some codes have become popular in usage despite their cryptic nature, particularly at the largest airports. Toronto's code has entered pop culture in

3416-515: The two-letter code of the radio beacons that were the closest to the actual airport, such as YQX in Gander or YXS in Prince George . Four of the ten provincial capital airports in Canada have ended up with codes beginning with YY, including: Canada's largest airport is YYZ for Toronto Pearson (as YTZ was already allocated to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport , the airport was given

3477-478: The years as to whether it was fitting to rename the airport from Accra International Airport to Kotoka International Airport from General Kotoka . Many argue that the airport was built by Dr Kwame Nkrumah , and that it is not fitting to name it after Kotoka, who led a coup to overthrow Nkrumah's government. Kotoka International Airport is served by numerous cargo airlines on a regularly scheduled basis, in addition to ad-hoc cargo flights. In 2016, Air Ghana opened

3538-413: Was done by President John Dramani Mahama and Turkish President Recep Tayyib Erdogan. The new Terminal 3 will handle 1,250 passengers an hour, equipped with three business lounges, a large commercial and retail area and six boarding bridges. The terminal opened to passengers on 15 September 2018 and officially inaugurated on 2 October by President Nana Akufo-Addo . There has been considerable debate over

3599-492: Was handed over to civilian authorities after the war. A development project was launched in 1956 by President Kwame Nkrumah to reconfigure the structure into a terminal building. The project was completed in 1958, turning the military base into an airport with a capacity of 500,000 passengers per year. The airport was originally named Accra International Airport. In 1969, the Accra International Airport

3660-547: Was renamed Kotoka International Airport, in honor of Lieutenant General Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka (1926–1967), a member of the National Liberation Council . Kotoka was killed in an abortive coup attempt at a location that is now the forecourt of the airport. Construction officially commenced on 1 March 2016 on a new $ 274 million Terminal 3 which is capable of handling 5 million passengers a year, with an expansion potential of up to 6.5 million. The sod-cutting

3721-604: Was replaced as COO by Apiigy Afenu. A third Embraer 145 was delivered in November 2013 as the airline increased frequencies on the domestic routes. In December 2013, AWA launched its first international route connecting Accra with Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Lagos . Services to its fourth domestic destination of Takoradi commenced in May 2015. Plans for expansion of regional routes were temporarily put on hold due to

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