Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport Aeropuerto Internacional Alejandro Velasco Astete | |||||||||||
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Summary | |||||||||||
Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
Operator | CORPAC S.A. | ||||||||||
Serves | Cusco | ||||||||||
Opened | December 1964 | ||||||||||
Focus city for | LATAM Airlines Perú | ||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 10,860 ft / 3,310 m | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 13°32′08″S71°56′37″W / 13.53556°S 71.94361°W | ||||||||||
Website | www | ||||||||||
Map | |||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||
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Statistics (2023) | |||||||||||
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Source: Corporación Peruana de Aeropuertos y Aviación Comercial [1] |
Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport( IATA : CUZ, ICAO : SPZO) is an international airport located in the city of Cusco, in southeastern Peru. Cusco, a principal tourist attraction in Latin America, receives various domestic flights as well as some international flights. The runway is completely paved. It operates at limited capacity due to its precarious location near the city's center. Despite these limitations, the airport has consistently ranked as Peru's second most important air terminal, handling 3,004,412 national and international passengers in 2023, as reported by CORPAC.
It was named in honor of the Peruvian pilot Alejandro Velasco Astete who was the first aeroplane pilot to cross the Andes in 1925. This first flight was from Lima directly to Cusco. Later that year, in September, while trying to avoid crashing into spectators at an airshow in the city of Puno he crashed and was killed. In recognition of his pioneering achievements in Peruvian aviation history, the airport was named in his honor.
The airport began service in December 1964. It was served by American Airlines from New York City on a JFK-LIM-CUZ-LIM-JFK routing from 1998 to 1999 using Boeing 757-200 aircraft.[ citation needed ] However, these flights were discontinued due to a number of factors, including the airport's limited services and facilities, as well as the Peruvian government's refusal to grant passenger transportation rights between Lima and Cusco. American still holds the rights to this route and can resume flights at the company's discretion.[ citation needed ] The airport was largely controlled by airline giants Aeroperú and Faucett Perú, which would both be declared bankrupt in the late 1990s. In 1970, LANSA Flight 502 crashed after taking off from the airport and killed 99 out of the 100 on board.
On February 3, 2017, President Kuczynski announced the beginning of the construction of the new Chinchero International Airport, [2] which will be located in the suburb of Chinchero, 30 minutes from the city of Cusco. It is estimated that the new airport, will be completed by 2025 when Velasco Astete International Airport will be closed. [3] It is expected to receive up to 6 million passengers upon its opening. Its main intent is to promote more tourism in Cusco and to prevent a stop in Lima's Jorge Chávez International Airport, since the current airport mostly has domestic destinations from Lima and other countries in South America. There are multiple environmental and safety concerns regarding the new airport, with numerous attempts, even by UNESCO, to stop the construction of the airport which could harm the popular Incan site Machu Picchu and other ruins. The new airport broke ground in November 2021. [4]
The airport has a number of amenities to service the multitude of tourists which visit the city of Cusco. A number of years ago, it was the first Peruvian airport to make use of jetways. The runway is paved and is 3,400 meters (11,200 feet) long and 45 meters (148 feet) wide. The long length of the runway is due to the elevation of the airport. The thin/less dense air requires aircraft to use more runway length to generate wing lift. Engine power generation is reduced for the same reasons, less dense air, less thrust from the engines than at lower elevations. Climb-outs are much more slow and shallow than at lower elevation airports. Due to high terrain on 3 sides, this is a "one runway airport". [5] Landings are only authorized from the south, onto runway 28. [6] Takeoffs are only authorized in the reverse direction, from runway 10. [7]
Airlines | Destinations |
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Avianca | Bogotá, La Paz |
JetSmart Perú | Arequipa, Lima |
LATAM Perú | Arequipa, Ayacucho, Lima, Puerto Maldonado, Santiago de Chile |
Sky Airline Peru | Arequipa (resumes 10 March 2025), Lima, Puerto Maldonado (resumes 10 March 2025) |
Taxi services are located just outside of the landing area. Rates are provided at the moment of the deal depending on both the number of passengers and the final destinations. Shuttle options for transportation include Cusco Airport Shuttle and Cusco Shuttle
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
On August 9, 1970, LANSA Flight 502, a four-engine Lockheed L-188A Electra turboprop, crashed shortly after takeoff from Cusco Airport, killing 99 of the 100 people on board, plus two people on the ground. It was the second deadliest accident in Peru's aviation history till that time. 49 of the passengers were high school exchange students visiting Peru from Buffalo, New York. Investigation revealed the accident was caused by improper piloting technique and aircraft poor maintenance. The airline was suspended and fined by the Peruvian government. A memorial — a large white cross with a nameplate — has been erected for the victims near the crash site, about a mile and a half west-north-west from the airport. [8] [9] [10]
This article describes the transport in Peru.
Cusco or Cuzco is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the eponymous province and department. The city is the seventh most populous in Peru; in 2017, it had a population of 428,450. Its elevation is around 3,400 m (11,200 ft).
Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain ridge at 2,430 meters (7,970 ft). Often referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas", it is the most familiar icon of the Inca Empire. It is located in the Machupicchu District within the Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which is 80 kilometers (50 mi) northwest of the city of Cusco. The Urubamba River flows past it, cutting through the Cordillera and creating a canyon with a subtropical mountain climate.
Jorge Chávez International Airport is the main international airport serving Lima, the capital of Peru. It is located in Callao, 11 kilometers (6.8 mi) northwest of Lima Center, the nation's capital city and 17 kilometers (11 mi) from the district of Miraflores. In 2023, the airport served 22,876,785 passengers. Historically, the airport was the hub for Compañía de Aviación Faucett and Aeroperú. Now it serves as a hub for many aviation companies. The airport was named after Peruvian aviator Jorge Chávez (1887–1910). It is among the busiest airports in South America.
Aero Cóndor S.A., also known as Aero Cóndor Peru, was an airline based in Lima, the capital of Peru. It was founded and started operations in 1975, and provides domestic charter flights, cargo, scenic, and air ambulance services. Its main hub is Jorge Chávez International Airport in Lima.
Alejandro Velasco Astete was a Peruvian pilot, most recognizable for being the first man to fly over the Andes. He was 28 years old upon his death.
Cuz or CUZ may refer to:
Rodríguez Ballón International Airport is an airport serving Arequipa, the capital of Arequipa Region and Peru's second largest city. This airport and Cusco's Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport are the main air hubs in southern Peru. It is named for early Peruvian aviator Alfredo Rodríguez Ballón. It is the third most busiest airport in Peru.
Coronel (Crnl.) FAP Francisco Secada Vignetta International Airport is an airport serving Iquitos, capital of Loreto Region and Peru's fifth largest city. It is also known as Iquitos International Airport, and is one of the main airports in Peru.
PeruRail is a railway operator providing tourist, freight, and charter services in southern Peru. It was founded in 1999 by two Peruvian entrepreneurs and the British company Sea Containers.
LANSA Flight 502 was a Lockheed L-188A Electra operated by Líneas Aéreas Nacionales Sociedad Anónima (LANSA) which crashed shortly after takeoff from Quispiquilla Airport near Cusco, Peru, on August 9, 1970, after losing all power from one of its four engines. The turboprop airliner, registered OB-R-939, was bound from Cusco to Lima, carrying 8 crew and 92 passengers. All but one of the occupants died from injuries sustained from impact forces and post crash fire. Two people on the ground were also killed. There were 49 American high school exchange students on board, all of whom perished. A Peruvian government investigation concluded that the accident was caused by improper execution of engine-out procedures by the flight crew and lack of proper maintenance. LANSA was fined and its operations were suspended for 90 days. At the time, the crash was the deadliest ever in Peruvian history before being surpassed by Faucett Perú Flight 251 in 1996.
Air Perú International S.A.C. was a proposed Peruvian airline to be based in Lima, Peru. It planned to operate scheduled domestic and international services to Asia, Europe, South America and the United States. Its main base would have been Jorge Chávez International Airport.
Transportes Aéreos Cielos Andinos, normally referred to as Cielos Andinos, is an airline based in Lima, Peru. Its main base is Jorge Chávez International Airport in Lima. It began domestic operations on July 9, 2007, to Andahuaylas. Future destinations include Cajamarca, Ayacucho, Cusco, Puerto Maldonado, Chimbote and Arequipa.
Lineas Aéreas Nacionales S.A. was a Peruvian commercial airline headquartered in Lima, Peru, which was established in 1963. After its last Lockheed Electra crashed on Christmas Eve 1971, LANSA ceased operation, and lost its operating authority on January 4, 1972, when its working capital was exhausted.
Aviandina was a small airline from Peru, which was operational between 1999 and 2003.
The Amazing Race en Discovery Channel 1 is the first season of The Amazing Race en Discovery Channel, a Latin American reality competition show based on the American series The Amazing Race. Hosted by Harris Whitbeck, it featured eleven teams of two, each with a pre-existing relationship, in a race across Latin America to win US$250,000. The season was produced by RGB Entertainment. This season visited two continents and nine countries and traveled over 14,600 kilometres (9,100 mi). Starting in Iguaçu National Park, racers traveled through Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, and Mexico before finishing in Mexico City. The Amazing Race en Discovery Channel premiered on Discovery Latin America on Sunday 20 September 2009 at 10:00 p.m. (UTC-5). The season finale was aired on 13 December 2009 at 10:00 p.m. (UTC-5).
The Peru–Yale University dispute was a century-long conflict between the government of Peru and Yale University about the rightful ownership of Inca human remains and artifacts from Machu Picchu, an ancient Inca site high in the Peruvian Andes active c. 1420–1532. In the several years following his re-discovery of Machu Picchu in 1911, Yale explorer Hiram Bingham III removed thousands of objects – including pottery, stone tools, and human bones – from the archaeological site and brought them to New Haven, Connecticut. The circumstances of these transfers were disputed, with some, including Bingham, claiming that Yale agreed to borrow the artifacts for a period of 18 months to conduct studies. Peru attempted to regain the collection in the 1920s, but Yale resisted. Tensions rose between 2006 and 2010 with a lawsuit, activism by Peruvians and Yale alumni, and a plea to then–U.S. President Barack Obama by then–Peruvian President Alan Garcia. On November 19, 2010, Peru and Yale reached an agreement that the remains and artifacts would be returned. In early 2011, Yale and University of Cusco (UNSAAC) signed a further agreement that the two institutions would partner to create a museum and research center in Cusco. The museum, the Museo Machu Picchu, was opened to the public in November 2011. The collection is regarded by experts to be among the most valuable collections of Inca artifacts.
Expreso Aéreo was a small Peruvian regional airline based at Jorge Chávez International Airport. It was a passenger and cargo airline that operated from 1991 until 1997.
Chinchero International Airport is an under construction international airport in the town of Chinchero, which is located in the district of the same name, in Cusco Region, Perú. It is planned to replace Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport. Its altitude is 3,720 metres (12,200 ft) above sea level.
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