Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport

For the airport serving Pointe-Noire, Republic of the Congo (Congo-Brazzaville), see Agostinho-Neto International Airport.

Dr. Antonio Agostinho Neto International Airport
Aeroporto Internacional Dr. António Agostinho Neto (Portuguese)
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerGovernment of Angola
OperatorEmpresa Nacional de Exploração de Aeroportos e Navegação Aérea (ENANA)
ServesLuanda
LocationBom Jesus, Icolo e Bengo Province, Angola
Hub forTAAG Angola Airlines
Elevation AMSL522 ft / 159 m
Coordinates9°2′48.4″S 13°30′25.9″E / 9.046778°S 13.507194°E / -9.046778; 13.507194 (Dr. Agostinho Neto Airport (Luanda))
Website[1]
Interactive map of Dr. Antonio Agostinho Neto International Airport
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
06L/24R 12,467 3,800 Asphalt
06R/24L 13,123 4,000 Asphalt/Concrete
Source: aerobaticsweb.org [1]

Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport (Portuguese: Aeroporto Internacional Dr. António Agostinho Neto)[2] (IATA: NBJ, ICAO: FNBJ), informally Novo Aeroporto Internacional de Luanda (NAIL), is the international airport serving Luanda, the capital of Angola. It is located in the municipality of Bom Jesus in Icolo e Bengo Province, 40 km (25 miles) south-east of Luanda city center. It is named after Agostinho Neto, the first president of Angola.

It is the largest airport ever constructed by any Chinese enterprise outside of China.[3] It is intended to be Angola's main gateway to the world and an important air hub for Africa, having been designed for 15 million passengers annually and 130,000 metric tons of cargo.[3][4][5] The five busiest airports in Africa handle 7.5–28 million passengers per year,[6] of which three have direct flights from Luanda. The older Luanda airport, Quatro de Fevereiro served 5.6 million in 2018.

History

The site was selected in 2004 and construction began in mid-2006.[7] The original date for completion was 2012.[7] Construction costs, which were to be financed largely by China, were estimated in 2015 at US$3.8 billion.[7] Reporting in 2024 indicates the project started in 2005, with construction beginning in 2013.[8] The project was led first by China International Fund[9] in conjunction with the Brazilian company Odebrecht until 2019, then by Aviation Industry Corporation of China.[5] The original contract was terminated in 2017 and a new contract issued in 2020.[8]

The airport was officially inaugurated on 10 November 2023.[4][10][8] Domestic passenger flights were planned to begin in February 2024 and international passenger services in June 2024.[3] Flight operations began slowly, however, as the first cargo flight was on 19 December 2023,[11] and only 32 cargo flights were completed by 20 February 2024.[12] During the 30 days ending 9 August 2024, fewer than ten flights were recorded.[13] By early April 2024, the target date to shift all operations to the new airport was the end of 2024.[8] TAAG Angola Airlines later planned to move their hub progressively to Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport until the end of the first quarter of 2025.[14]

The first passenger flight connection at the new airport was launched on 10 November 2024.[15] By 18 December 2024, an average of four flight departures per day was recorded.[16] By 17 April 2025, an average of 11 flight departures per day was recorded, all by TAAG Angola Airlines and nearly all to Angolan destinations.[17] TAAG transferred its international services in October 2025, and other airlines gradually followed.[18] By 5 January 2026, average daily departures rose to 19, while departures from the previous airport declined to 2.[19]

In March 2026, all airline operations were transferred to the new airport.[20]

Facilities

The facility has a total area of 43 hectares (0.43 km2; 110 acres), consisting of two modern runways and three terminal buildings.[3][8]

Runways

The airport has two parallel runways, located 2.2 km (1.4 miles) from each other. The first runway is 4,000 m × 60 m (13,120 ft × 200 ft). The second runway is 3,800 m × 60 m (12,470 ft × 200 ft).[1] Only one runway was in active use as of December 2025.[18]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport:

AirlinesDestinations
Air France Paris–Charles de Gaulle[21]
Airlink Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo[20]
ASKY Airlines Lomé[22]
Emirates Dubai–International
Ethiopian Airlines Addis Ababa[23][24]
Lufthansa Frankfurt[18]
Qatar Airways Doha[25]
Royal Air Maroc Casablanca[22]
TAAG Angola Airlines Abidjan, (begins 6 April 2026)[26]Brazzaville, Cabinda,[15] Cape Town, Guangzhou (begins 30 March 2026),[27] Havana, Johannesburg–O. R. Tambo, Kinshasa–N'djili, Lagos, Lisbon, Maputo, Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta, São Paulo–Guarulhos, São Tomé, Windhoek–Hosea Kutako
Seasonal: Porto
TAP Air Portugal Lisbon,[28][29] Porto[29]
Turkish Airlines Istanbul[22]

References

  1. ^ a b "Airports Report Luanda". aerobaticsweb.org. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
  2. ^ "Angolan transport minister about naming of the airport". portalangop.co.ao. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d Zhao, Lei (14 November 2023). "Chinese-built airport opens in Angola". China Daily Global. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  4. ^ a b "New International Airport of Luanda António Agostinho Neto opened this Friday". Ver Angola. 10 November 2023. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Angola — Transportation". Country Commercial Guide. International Trade Administration. 1 February 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  6. ^ "List of the top 5 African airports in 2024". kiwi.com. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  7. ^ a b c "Novo aeroporto de Luanda deverá ser o "mais importante" na África Central". Ver Angola (in Portuguese). 5 March 2015.
  8. ^ a b c d e Inside Angola's new airport (Television production). CNN. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  9. ^ "Angola Delays Opening of $5 Billion Airport for the Fourth Time". Bloomberg.com. 17 June 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  10. ^ "Angola Launches New Chinese-built International Airport". China-Lusophone Brief. 13 November 2023. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
  11. ^ Costa, Tatiana (20 December 2023). "First commercial cargo flight lands at António Agostinho Neto International Airport". Ver Angola. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  12. ^ Costa, Tatiana (20 February 2024). "International Airport Dr. António Agostinho Neto has already received more than 30 cargo flights". Ver Angola. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  13. ^ "Live Air Traffic". flightradar24. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  14. ^ "TAAG to start gradual transfer of commercial flights to new airport". 30 October 2024. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  15. ^ a b "Angola: TAAG launches flights to Cabinda at Dr. António Agostinho Neto International airport". 11 November 2024. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  16. ^ "Live Air Traffic". flightradar24. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
  17. ^ "Live Air Traffic". flightradar24. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  18. ^ a b c Pilling, Mark (10 December 2025). "Angola's New Airport Gateway Takes Shape, Prepares For New Operator". aviationweek.com. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  19. ^ "Live Air Traffic". flightradar24. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
  20. ^ a b "Concluída transferência das operações das companhias aéreas para o novo aeroporto". GiraNoticias (in Portuguese). 2 March 2026. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  21. ^ "Air France shifts Angola flights to new Luanda airport". ch-aviation.com. 19 November 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  22. ^ a b c Vaga, Nova (30 January 2026). "Royal Air Maroc, Turkish Airlines e ASKY mudam-se para o AIAAN a 2 de Fevereiro". Expansão (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  23. ^ "Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ADD". OAG Flight Guide Worldwide. 26 (11). Luton, United Kingdom: OAG Aviation Worldwide Limited: 17–19. May 2025. ISSN 1466-8718. OCLC 41608313.
  24. ^ "Ethiopian Airlines Relocates All Luanda Flights to New António Agostinho Neto International Airport from 16 December 2025, Enhancing Passenger Experience and Connectivity". travelandtourworld.com. 16 December 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  25. ^ "Airport operations update in Luanda – LAD to NBJ". qatarairways.com. 1 December 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  26. ^ "Angola and Côte d'Ivoire Sign Air Services Agreement, Enabling TAAG Route Between Luanda and Abidjan". African Pilot. Retrieved 8 March 2026.
  27. ^ https://centreforaviation.com/news/taag-to-add-10-aircraft-planning-new-destinations-in-2026-1338684
  28. ^ "TAP muda voos de Luanda para novo aeroporto em 1 de dezembro". Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). 9 November 2025. Retrieved 13 November 2025.
  29. ^ a b "TAP muda operação para o novo aeroporto de Luanda já a 1 de dezembro". TNEWS (in Portuguese). 6 November 2025. Retrieved 7 March 2026.


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