Maun Airport
From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia
Maun International Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana | ||||||||||
| Serves | Maun, Botswana | ||||||||||
| Hub for | |||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 3,093 ft / 943 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 19°58′21″S 23°25′50″E / 19.97250°S 23.43056°E | ||||||||||
| Website | caab | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  MUB Location of the airport in Botswana | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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Maun Airport (IATA: MUB, ICAO: FBMN) is an international airport serving the town of Maun in the North-West District of Botswana. It is on the north side of the town and is accessible by shuttle bus or taxi.
Maun Airport serves as the main gateway to the Okavango Delta and the Moremi Game Reserve. Many tour operators offer chartered flights over the Delta and to Botswana destinations such as the Makgadikgadi Pans, one of the largest seasonal wetlands in Africa. Servicing the many lodges in the area is a major activity, including the transport of passengers and provisions, with short-distance flights taking a few minutes where the journey by 4x4 truck would take several hours. These operations, during their peak in the June to August high season, make the airport the second-busiest in Africa for aircraft movements.[3]
There are also daily scheduled flights to destinations in Botswana and South Africa.[4][5]
Wilderness Air operates regular charter flights from its Windhoek-Eros-hub, Namibia to Maun.[6]
Early history 1925-1939[edit]
The aircraft were awaited as they brought news of the outside world, mail, medicines, foodstuffs, and above all, new people to a community hundreds of kilometres from the nearest big town. The first air service began in the 1930s, using a landing strip that today is Maun's main street. The strip was later moved away from the town centre to the present site of the airport.
The earliest known flights over the Okavango took place in July 1925, and were part of a survey of rivers in the region, using aircraft based in Livingstone. Two Airco D.H. 9 type, numbers 142 and 144 of the then Union Defense Force of South Africa, were used, piloted by Captain C.W. Meredith and Lieutenant L. Tasker. They routed to Livingstone from Johannesburg via Bulawayo.[7]
Airlink commenced direct flights between Cape Town and Maun starting in March 2016.[8] In October 2016, Air Namibia suspended scheduled flights to Maun Airport.[4] In May 2018 government officials confirmed their commitment to refurbish and upgrade the existing airport building.[9]
Airlines and destinations[edit]
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air Botswana | Gaborone, Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo, Kasane, Victoria Falls |
| Airlink | Cape Town,[10] Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo[11] |
| CemAir | Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo[12] |
| Ethiopian Airlines | Addis Ababa (begins 10 June 2024)[13] |
| Fastjet Zimbabwe | Victoria Falls[14] |
| FlyNamibia | Windhoek–Hosea Kutako (begins 3 July 2024)[15] |
Accidents[edit]
In March 2000 a Cessna 414 crashed on its way from Gaborone to Maun. The pilot and a passenger walked for over 200 kilometres (120 mi) to find help.[16]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Airport information for Maun Airport at Great Circle Mapper.
- ^ SkyVector - Maun Airport
- ^ Spaeth, Andreas (July 2023). "Botswana's sky-high bush safari". Airliner World (288): 53–61.
- ^ a b "Southern & East African Tourism Update".
- ^ Air Botswana, 2009
- ^ "Wilderness Air » Botswana". www.wilderness-air.com. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
- ^ "www.ngamitimes.com/Archives/". The Ngami Times. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
- ^ "Cape Town gets direct flight link to Botswana's Okavango Delta". Traveller. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
- ^ Pelontle, Kedirebofe (11 May 2018). "Botswana: Maun Airport Terminal Building On Cards". Botswana Daily News (Gaborone). Retrieved 20 August 2018.
- ^ "SA Airlink Adds Cape Town - Maun Service from March 2016". Airlineroute.net. 16 October 2015. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
- ^ "Air Namibia to suspend flights to Maun". 25 June 2016.
- ^ "CemAir Adds Johannesburg - Maun Service From May 2023". AeroRoutes. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- ^ "Ethiopian Airlines NS24 Africa Service Changes – 24JAN24". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
- ^ "Cheap flights to Zimbabwe, South Africa and Botswana".
- ^ https://flynam.com/schedule/
- ^ "BBC News | AFRICA | Crash survivors found in desert".
External links[edit]
Media related to Maun Airport at Wikimedia Commons
- Air Botswana (2009) Official Flight Schedule
- C. Michael Hogan (2008) Makgadikgadi, The Megalithic Portal, ed. A. Burnham
- Maun Airport (MUB/FBMN) (2008), AZWorldAirports.com
- Air Namibia axes Windhoek to Maun route
- Maun in Helipaddy
- Accident history for Maun at Aviation Safety Network
