Abel Santamaría Airport[2][3] (Spanish: Aeropuerto "Abel Santamaría"[4]) (IATA: SNU, ICAO: MUSC) is an international airport serving Santa Clara, the capital city of the Villa Clara Province in Cuba. It was named after the Cuban revolutionary Abel Santamaría. The airport is the main entry point for tourists travelling to Cayo Santa María and the other keys on the northern coast of the province.
Abel Santamaría Airport Aeropuerto Abel Santamaría | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Military/Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | ECASA | ||||||||||
| Serves | Villa Clara Province, Cienfuegos Province, and Sancti Spiritus Province in Cuba | ||||||||||
| Location | Aeropuerto Ward, Santa Clara municipality, Cuba | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 103 m / 338 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 22°29′32″N 079°56′37″W / 22.49222°N 79.94361°W | ||||||||||
| Website | santaclara | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
.svg)  MUSC Location in Cuba | |||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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Source: Aerodrome chart[1] | |||||||||||
The runway is 3,017 metres (9,898 ft) wide, being the 9th biggest of the country.[5]
On 31 August 2016, JetBlue Flight 387 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, landed at the airport to commence regular commercial flights between Fort Lauderdale and Santa Clara, the first commercial flight from the United States to Cuba in 54 years following the thaw in Cuba–United States relations.[6]
Airlines and destinations
edit| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air Canada Rouge | Seasonal: Toronto–Pearson |
| Air Transat | Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson Seasonal: Halifax, Ottawa, Québec City |
| American Airlines | Miami |
| Copa Airlines | Panama City–Tocumen |
| Iberojet | Seasonal: Barcelona (begins 20 June 2025),[7] Madrid[8] |
| Neos | Seasonal: Milan–Malpensa |
| Nordwind Airlines | Seasonal charter: Moscow–Sheremetyevo[citation needed] |
| OWG | Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson |
| Sunwing Airlines | Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson Seasonal: Fredericton, Halifax, Ottawa, Québec City, Windsor |
| World2Fly | Seasonal charter: Bratislava, Prague[9] |
Santa Clara Air Base
editThe airport was previously used as a Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces air base for:
- 14th Tactical Regiment – MiG-23BN bombers and older MiG-23UB fighters
- Tactical Air Command – MiG-23BN bombers and older MiG-23UB fighters
- 2661st Bomber Squadron
- 1890th Interceptor Regiment – MiG-21B and MiG-21UM fighters
It is currently being used by Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces as a helicopter squadron air base, flying Mi-17 helicopters in the transport role and Mi-24/35 helicopters in the troop support role.
References
edit- ^ Aerodrome chart Archived 23 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Issued 30 October 2007
- ^ "Airport information for MUSC". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF. - ^ "Santa Clara: Planning a Trip". Frommers.com. Wiley Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
- ^ "Aeropuertos de Cuba" [Airports of Cuba] (in Spanish). El Instituto de Aeronáutica Civil de Cuba (IACC). Archived from the original on 18 June 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
- ^ "Aspectos de planificación del sector marítimo" (PDF). p. 46.
- ^ "U.S. resumes scheduled passenger flights to Cuba after more than 50 years". Reuters. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2016.
- ^ "Iberojet Adds Barcelona – Santa Clara in NS25". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
- ^ "IBEROJET ADDS ORLANDO / SANTA CLARA IN NS24". AeroRoutes. 6 December 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ "WORLD2FLY NW23 CZECHIA / SLOVAKIA CHARTERS". aeroroutes.com.
External links
edit
Media related to Abel Santamaría Airport at Wikimedia Commons
