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Quick Facts:
The airport is
located 23 km from Banjul (capital) at Yundum & it is
the Gambia's only airport. It used to be one of the emergency
landing sites for the NASA shuttle.
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| Details: |
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| Airport Code: |
BJL / GBYD |
| Area |
1327 Hectares |
| Longitude: |
016° 39´08" W |
| Latitude: |
13° 20´17" N |
| Runway Length: |
3,600m (11,811ft) |
| Elevation: |
28.9 |
| Check-in desks: |
7 |
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Facilities:
Banking (Trust Bank Ltd.) with ATM
Biometric visa system
13 computer terminals
Bureau de Change
Business Centre
Car hire
Car parking (long & short-term) D15 per day
Disabled access
Duty free shop
Help desk
Internet access
Police Station
Porter service
Post Office
Public Telephone
Refreshments Bar
Restaurant
Taxi rank service
Shops
Travel agent
VIP lounge area |
Departures Information: Live
Updates
Banjul Airport only handles international flights
& there is no domestic flights service to the up-country
destinations.
On your date of departure your luggage will be taken to
the airport by your tourist bus. You usually get the labels
that have to be fixed to your suitcases in your hotel. The
clearance takes place at the airport itself. All suitcases
are lined up on the platform, you pick out your own suitcases
and give them to the customs officer. In many cases you
will have to open them, so don't forget your keys. After
customs have checked your suitcases and have put a new chalk
mark on them, porters (tip!) will see to it that they are
loaded onto the transport lorry to the airplane.
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Arrivals Information:
(Live Updates) The Banjul Airport
 procedure
is that once your flight has landed on the runway a bus will transfer
you to the main terminal building where you should queue at the
rank for non-Gambians if you are a tourist non-national. At the
passport control they will put an entry stamp in your passport.
The next step is to pay a tourist tax of D250 which is around
£5.00 / €6.34 / $9.15 to the tourism authority which is payable
in any currency. There is now an Airport
Development Fee of €20 per person, not including infants, to be
paid to the local collecting agency on all departures.
When you get to the luggage carousel you may have to wait a while
so ensure you have a little liquid refreshment in your hand-luggage
as the temperature can get a little uncomfortable at times. Trolleys
are provided free however should you decide to use the services
of a porter then be prepared to give a small tip of around £1
€1.26 / $1.83. The next step is that you should join the baggage
security queue where your luggage may be searched but will be
scanned by an x-ray machine. From here you can proceed out of
the main building complex.
If you have arrived with one of the main tour operators then you
will usually exit to the right of the main gate where you will
have you coach waiting to transfer you to your resort. Drinks
are served in this area while you wait for the other passengers
from your party to finalise with formalities. NOTE: The
airport is located 20 km from the capital in the Old Yundum district
hence its alternative name.
 If
you need to spend any length of time at the airport & require
refreshments you can visit the
Air View Restaurant located on the top floor where they serve
cooked food and drinks as well as the ground floor snack bar.
After you have finished with all formalities there is also a tourist
help desk directly to the left of the exit.
If you have used a tour operator then they should have airport
transfers already arranged.
If you are an independent traveller then you can either use a
car hire company located at the
terminal or you can hire one of the tourist taxi
waiting outside the main gates. Please note that taxi rates are
fixed and the fares are posted just outside the terminal gates
on the right hand-side against the wall. Expect to pay around
£9 / €14 / $20 to take your to the main tourist resorts
on the coast.
The complex is managed by the Gambia Civil Aviation Authority.
Design:
The Banjul Airport was designed
by Pierre Goudiaby also known as Atepa who is a Jolla architect
from Senegal.
Martin L. King Building
Fann-Mermoz, BP 2191
Senegal
Tel: +221 (865) 11 11
Fax: +221 (824) 90 72
E-mail: atepa@atepa.com
Website: www.atepa.com
History:
The airport was originally a World War II Allied airfield which
served as a port of call for Allied naval convoys and an air stopover
for the U.S. Army Air Corps. Franklin D. Roosevelt, the then US
President stayed overnight in Banjul
en route to and from the Casablanca Conference in 1943, making
it the first visit to the African Continent by a sitting American
president.
The Gambia Civil Aviation
Authority (GCAA) was established in July 1991 by the Government
as an autonomous institution by the Public Enterprise Act of 1989
(PEA). It was to put into effect the Chicago Convention and to
regulate, oversee and bring the aviation industry to International
Standards. The assets and liabilities of the former Dept. of Civil
Aviation was transferred to the GCAA.
Prior to the opening of the new terminal building in October,
1997 the old airport was essentially a few purpose build sheds
which resembled barns.
NOTE: The information on this page should not be relied upon for
any navigational purposes. |
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