Botopasi Airstrip Botopassi Airstrip | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Luchtvaartdienst Suriname | ||||||||||
| Location | Botopasi, Suriname | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 242 ft / 74 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 4°13′03″N55°26′49″W / 4.217511°N 55.447054°W | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  SMBO Location in Suriname | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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Botopasi Airstrip( IATA : BTO, ICAO : SMBO) is an airstrip serving Botopasi, Suriname.
The Botopasi Airstrip was constructed by the Surinamese Medical Missionary Service, the "Surinaamse Medische Zendings Vliegdienst", also called the “Medische Zending Suriname” and was frequently visited by the Mission Aviation Fellowship. It was the first airstrip at the Upper Surinam River and was destined to facilitate transport to Paramaribo from the clinics Pokigron, Ladoani, Debikè and Dyumu. The first landing took place on 14 January 1963 by the American pilot Ted Lepper in his Piper Cub N 5406H. For many years the MAF (Missionary Aviation Fellowship) remained the main user of the airstrip. Nowadays multiple flights are available by many charter companies.
Charter airlines serving this airport are:
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Blue Wing Airlines | Charter: Paramaribo–Zorg en Hoop [3] |
| Gum Air | Charter: Paramaribo–Zorg en Hoop [4] |
| Hi-Jet Helicopter Services | Charter: Paramaribo–Zorg en Hoop |
| United Air Services | Charter: Paramaribo–Zorg en Hoop |
| Vortex Aviation Suriname | Charter: Paramaribo–Zorg en Hoop |
On 23 August 1986 a Cessna 172L Skyhawk with registration PZ-NAN from the Aero Club Suriname was damaged landing at Botopasi, the pilot was J. Jaeger. The plane was repaired and returned to its home-base at Zorg en Hoop Airport. [5] On 25 September 1986 a Cessna U206G Stationair 6, registration PZ-TAC from Gonini Air Service was hijacked at Apetina kondre airstrip by rebels of the "Jungle Commando" of Ronnie Brunswijk. The pilot (O. van Amson jr.) was forced to fly the aircraft to an unknown location. In May 1988 the airplane was at the Botopasi Airstrip in Suriname with a flat tire; apparently at that time in use by the jungle commando. The aircraft never returned to the owner and was canceled from the Surinamese Aviation register in 1993. [6] [7] Surinam Airways, also known by its initials SLM, is the flag carrier of Suriname, based in Paramaribo. It operates regional and long-haul scheduled passenger services. Its hub is at Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport (Zanderij). Surinam Airways is wholly owned by the Government of Suriname.
Blue Wing Airlines n.v. is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Zorg en Hoop Airport in Paramaribo, Suriname. The airline started operations in January 2002 and operates charter and scheduled services from Paramaribo to destinations in the interior of Suriname, Guyana, Brazil, Venezuela and the Caribbean area. Its main base is Zorg en Hoop Airport. The airline is on the list of air carriers banned in the EU for safety violations. They were temporarily removed from the list on 28 November 2007 after implementing a corrective action plan ordered by the EU Transportation Commission. However, on 6 July 2010, the airline was banned again from European and French territory airspace as a result of three accidents involving Blue Wing Airlines: one on 3 April 2008 with 19 fatalities, another accident on 15 October 2009 that led to four unspecified injuries, and a third incident on 15 May 2010 with 8 fatalities. As of 2023, Blue Wing Airlines was banned from operating within the European Union.
Zorg en Hoop Airport is an airport serving general aviation in the city of Paramaribo, Suriname. It is 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) west of the Suriname River, between the city quarters of Zorg en Hoop and Flora.
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Vincent Fajks Airstrip is an airstrip serving Paloemeu, Suriname. The airport was constructed as part of Operation Grasshopper. It was named after the Polish pilot Vincent Fajks who crashed with co-pilot Ronald Kappel with their Aero Commander AC 520 (PZ-TAG) airplane at the site in October 1959, while trying to deliver building materials for the airport. They both received a state funeral in Paramaribo on 11 October 1959. There is a jungle resort on the Tapanahony River near Paloemeu.
Caricom Airways, which stands for Caribbean Commuter Airways, was a regional airline from the Caribbean, with the headquarters of the company at Paramaribo, Suriname. From the down-town Zorg en Hoop Airport in Suriname, Caricom Airways mainly flew charter flights to various destinations in the interior of Suriname, the Caribbean and Northern Brazil.
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Stoelmanseiland is an island, and a village in the Paramacca resort of the Sipaliwini District in Suriname. It is located at the confluence of the Tapanahony River with the Lawa River which forms the Marowijne River, and is also the border with French Guiana.
Nason is a village of Paramacca Maroons in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname. The village is located on an island in the Marowijne River.
Ronald "Rudi" Elwin Kappel was a Surinamese pilot. He was one of the founders of Luchtvaartbedrijf Kappel-Van Eyck which is now called Surinam Airways, the first airline in Suriname. He also helped construct the Zorg en Hoop Airport, and the Rudi Kappel Airstrip. Kappel died in an air crash near Paloemeu.
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