After the creation of the Statute of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Royal Netherlands Army was entrusted with the defence of Suriname, while the defence of the Netherlands Antilles was the responsibility of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The army set up a separate Netherlands Armed Forces in Suriname. Upon independence in 1975, this force was turned into the Surinamese Armed Forces. On February 25, 1980, a group of 15 non-commissioned officers and one junior officer, under the leadership of sergeant major Dési Bouterse, staged a coup d'état and overthrew the Government. Subsequently, the SKM was rebranded as the National Army.
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.
Nieuw Nickerie is the third largest city in Suriname with a population estimated at 12,818. It is the capital city of the Nickerie district, and the terminus of the East-West Link.
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.
Wageningen Airstrip is 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) north of Wageningen, in the Nickerie District of Suriname. Heavily used for cropdusting agriculture flights in this rice region of the country. Homebase of the Surinam Sky Farmers
Rudi Kappel Airstrip is located 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) south of the Tafelberg tepui in Suriname. It was constructed as part of Operation Grasshopper. It used to be named Tafelberg Airstrip, but was renamed Rudi Kappel Airstrip, after the co-pilot of a flight that crashed near Vincent Fayks Airport on 6 October 1959.
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.
Raghoebarsing Airstrip is located near Matapi, Suriname.
Hendrick Rudolf "Henk" Chin A Sen was a Surinamese politician who served as the President of Suriname from 15 August 1980 until 4 February 1982.
Gum Air is a Surinamese airline based at Zorg en Hoop Airport in Paramaribo, Suriname. Gum Air cooperates with Trans Guyana Airways to provide daily flights between Zorg en Hoop Airport (ORG) in Paramaribo, Suriname and Ogle Airport (OGL) in Georgetown, Guyana.
Oelemari Airstrip is an airstrip located near the Oelemari River in Suriname. This small grass airstrip was constructed as part of the Operation Grasshopper project in Suriname.
Henri Alwies Airstrip, also known as Henri Alwies Airfield or Henri Alwies Vliegveld, is in the Saramacca district of Suriname. This is one of the newest airports in Suriname, in use since April 5, 2012.
The Suriname Air Force is the air component of the Military of Suriname. All aircraft of the Suriname Air Force undertake border patrols, utility transport, and search and rescue missions from Zorg en Hoop Airport, the Air Force's main base. Aircraft are occasionally transferred to other air bases in the nation, which include Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport, Major Fernandes Airfield, Albina Airstrip, and Moengo Airstrip. The head of the Suriname Air Force is the Commander of the Air Force, currently Lieutenant Colonel Marven van Huisduinen, who took over the role in March 2019 from former Commander Robert Kartodikromo. The Air Force is further split into several wings, including the Helicopter Wing, the current Commander of which being Captain John-Marc Arron.
On 8 May 2015, a Mil Mi-17 transport helicopter of the Pakistan Army Aviation Corps crashed in Naltar, in the Gilgit District of the Gilgit-Baltistan region of northern Pakistan, killing eight people. Among the victims were the ambassadors of Norway and the Philippines to Pakistan, as well as the spouses of the Indonesian and Malaysian ambassadors to Pakistan, and three crew.
The Luchtvaartdienst Suriname is the Civil Aviation Department of the Suriname Ministry of Transport, Communication and Tourism. It is responsible for the regulation of all aviation activities in the country, and ensures that all activities are carried out in compliance with international standards. It is a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Alupi Airstrip is a rural airstrip in Groot Henar serving the rice growing region southeast of Nieuw Nickerie, in the Nickerie District of Suriname. The airstrip is next to the Nickerie River.
Gummels Heliport Paramaribo, is the first dedicated Heliport built in Suriname in 2015 at the Gummelsweg in the neighborhood of Kwatta near the city of Paramaribo, Suriname. Privately owned and used by the Gummels family who also own the Gum Air airline and the crop dust service Surinam Sky Farmers. The heliport is mainly used for helicopter charters and primarily for offshore development activities. Gum Air is currently constructing a new 3600-foot runway at this Gummels Heliport Paramaribo. The airline plans to utilize a new Cessna 408 SkyCourier it has on order for flights between Paramaribo, Georgetown, Port of Spain, and Cayenne. The new airport will mainly support the Oil & Gas, and Cargo sectors with charter flights from 2023 on.
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.
There are several named highways in the country of Suriname.
