OR Tambo International Airport Bio, History, Facts and Statistics
History, facts and statistics of Johannesburg - OR Tambo International Airport.
Johannesburg - OR Tambo International Airport was formerly known as Johannesburg International Airport and prior to that was called Jan Smuts Airport.
The airport was renamed in 2006 to honour the memory of one of South Africa's national heroes and icons, Oliver Reginald Tambo. An anti-apartheid politician and central figure in the African National Congress (ANC), Tambo served a term as president of South Africa. Johannesburg - OR Tambo International Airport, IATA Code: JNB and often shortened to ORTIA, lies 5,558 ft / 1,694 m above sea level in the Johannesburg suburb of Kempton Park, 23 km east of Johannesburg city centre and 46km south of Pretoria.
Situated in Gauteng, the airport is ideally situated in the heart of South Africa's commercial and industrial hub and has excellent road infrastructure linking it to Johannesburg, Pretoria and the national road network. The Gautrain rapid rail system has had its first section opened, linking the airport with Sandton, and is being extended to Johannesburg and Pretoria.
OR Tambo Airport Passenger Statistics
| Year | Passengers | Up/Down |
|---|---|---|
| 2006/2007 | 17,794,100 | no stats |
| 2007/2008 | 19,457,498 | +9.3% |
| 2008/2009 | 17,884,859 | -8.1% |
| 2009/2010 | 17,596,203 | -1.6% |
| 2010/2011 | 18,643,146 | +5.9% |
| 2011/2012 | 19,003,542 | +1.9% |
| 2012/2013 | 18,621,259 | -2.0% |
| 2013/2014 | 18,820,988 | +1.1% |
| 2014/2015 | 19,135,093 | +1.7% |
| 2015/2016 | 20,374,998 | +6.5% |
| 2016/2017 | 20,692,780 | +1.5% |
| 2017/2018 | 21,231,510 | +2.6% |
Johannesburg - OR Tambo International Airport is South Africa's principal airport, with more than 50 percent of the country's air passengers passing through the airport.
OR Tambo Airport services airlines from all five continents and plays a vital role in serving the local. regional, intra- and inter-continental air transport needs of South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. It is the biggest and busiest airport in Africa.
Major upgrades and expansion have been recently completed at the airport, enabling it to handle 19 million passengers a year. The motor car plays an important role in the lives of many South Africans and OR Tambo Airport now boasts a total of 11,500 parking bays. These range from on-airport, multi-storey parkades and shaded parking to long-term off-airport facilities, with free shuttle services offered to the terminals.
The 2 runways at the airport have been built longer then most airports due the altitude being 1,700 metres above sea level, making them some of the longest runways in the world. The air is more rarified and provides less air friction to assist deceleration on approach and landing and less lift on take-off.
It as one of only 4 airports in the world that fly scheduled non-stop services to all 6 inhabited conitents, the others being Abu-Dhabi, Doha and Dubai.