Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport

Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport
IATA: ELQ – ICAO: OEGS
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	General Authority of Civil Aviation
Operator	General Authority of Civil Aviation
Serves	Al-Qassim Region
Location	Mulayda, Buraidah, Saudi Arabia
Elevation AMSL	2,126[1] ft / 648[1] m
Coordinates	26°18′10″N 043°46′26″E / 26.30278°N 43.77389°ECoordinates: 26°18′10″N 043°46′26″E / 26.30278°N 43.77389°E
Map
ELQ Location of airport in Saudi Arabia
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 15/33 9,843 3,000 Asphalt

Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport (IATA: ELQ, ICAO: OEGS), formerly Qassim Regional Airport and widely known in the air-travel industry as "Gassim" (from Gassim Province in which it lies), is an airport in the Mulayda region (Arabic: المليداء‎‎) west of Buraidah, Saudi Arabia.^[2] The airport lies approximately 20 km west of Buraidah, the provincial capital, and 30 km northwest of Unaizah, the region's second largest city. It primarily serves the region in addition to the border areas of Hail and Riyadh provinces. Currently, 12 airlines serve the airport with 15 destinations in 6 countries (Saudi Arabia included).

The airport was established in 1964^[3] and is owned and operated by the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA). It was renamed to Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport after a royal decree by King Abdullah on 5 July 2012 in memory of former Crown Prince Nayef.^[4][3]

Prince Sultan, then crown prince and minister of defense and aviation, launched an expansion project of the royal terminal at the airport in 2003. GACA has spent more than SR300 million on expansion projects since 1964 and the airport continues to undergo further expansion as it consolidates its position as a main aviation hub in Saudi Arabia's central region.^[3][5]

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Air Arabia	Sharjah[6]
AlMasria Universal Airlines	Cairo[7]
EgyptAir	Cairo[8]
Flydubai	Dubai-International[9]
Gulf Air	Bahrain[10]
Nile Air	Cairo, Alexandria-Borg El Arab Airport[11]
Flynas	Jeddah, Dammam
Qatar Airways	Doha[12]
Saudia	Dammam, Dubai-International,[13] Jeddah, Medina, Riyadh[14]
Turkish Airlines	Seasonal: Istanbul–Atatürk
Air Cairo	Sohag, Sharm el-Sheikh, Assiut [15]
Nesma Airlines	Hail

Incidents and accidents

On 28 May 2005, three military helicopters parked in the airport caught fire, also damaging the buildings next to the hangar. There were no human casualties.^[16]

References

1. "Gassim". World Aero Data. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
2. https://www.google.com.sa/maps/place/Prince+Nayef+Bin+Abdulaziz+Regional+Airport
3. "Saudi Arabia: Qassim Regional Airport Named After Prince Naif". Eurasia Review. Arab News. 6 July 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
4. "خادم الحرمين الشريفين يسمي مطار القصيم بمطار الأمير نايف مباشر المدي". Al-madina.com. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
5. "اعتماد توسعة مطار الأمير نايف بمليار و250 مليون ريال". Ajel. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
6. "Flights Schedule". Air Arabia. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
7. "(ELQ) Gassim Airport Arrivals". FlightStats.com. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
8. http://www.egyptair.com/English/News/Pages/EGYPTAIR8aa14ddd-4552-403a-9c1d-b9261a211434.aspx
9. "Flight Timetable". Fly Dubai. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
10. http://www.gulfair.com/English/aboutgulfair/Pages/News.aspx?newsno=756
11. http://doma.gaca.gov.sa/ar-sa/Qasim/Pages/AirportFlights.aspx
12. "Press Release". Qatar Airways. 9 September 2009. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
13. [Saudia begin service to Dubai from January 2015]
14. "Flight Schedule". Saudi Airlines. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
15. http://www.flyaircairo.com
16. "Three Choppers Catch Fire at Qassim Airport". Arab News. Jeddah. 30 May 2005. Retrieved 15 August 2012.

External links

Media related to Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Regional Airport at Wikimedia Commons