One Of The Best Airport in Timor Leste
Here is the history of Suai Airport in Timor-Leste (officially known as Commander in Chief of FALINTIL, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, International Airport):
Early Operations and Indonesian Occupation
In 1974 and 1975, Transportes Aéreos de Timor (TAT), the national airline of the then Portuguese Timor, operated scheduled domestic flights between Dili and Covalima/Suai.
In April 1983, the Indonesian state-owned airline, Merpati Nusantara Airlines, started operating a flight route connecting Kupang, Dili, Maliana, and Covalima/Suai.
By 1985, this Merpati service was flying twice a week.
Up until the end of the Indonesian occupation in 1999, Merpati was still operating weekly flights using an Indonesian-built CASA turboprop aircraft, but the runway at Suai remained very short.
The 1999 INTERFET Intervention
Following the end of the Indonesian occupation in 1999, the airport saw critical upgrades during the INTERFET peacemaking operation.
The 17th Construction Squadron of the Australian Army upgraded the facility to support all-weather operations for Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft.
During this time, the runway was extended by 150 metres, and a turning node was added.
The military engineers also added hard stands, accommodation, workshops, five helipads, and remodelled the terminal to include air conditioning.
The Tasi Mane Project and Major Redevelopment
Timor-Leste’s national Strategic Development Plan 2011-2030 identified the need to significantly extend and refurbish the Suai runway, as well as build modern facilities.
The airport’s redevelopment became a foundational component of the “Tasi Mane Project,” a planned corridor of petroleum infrastructure along the southwest coast designed to support oil, gas, and mineral activities in the region.
The massive upgrading project was carried out by the Indonesian state-owned enterprise PT Waskita Karya at a total cost of US$86.7 million.
Inauguration and Current Status
The newly transformed airport was officially inaugurated on June 20, 2017.
It was renamed the “Commander in Chief of FALINTIL, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, International Airport” in honor of the East Timorese resistance leader and statesman, with the inauguration timing alongside his 71st birthday.
The major upgrades transformed it to meet International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards, featuring a 1,500-metre sealed runway, a new terminal building with customs and immigration facilities, a control tower, a fire station, and a medevac air ambulance helipad.
On September 28, 2018, the airport hosted its first international arrival, which was a charter flight operated by Northern Oil & Gas Australia (NOGA) coming from Darwin, Australia.
Despite the multimillion-dollar investment, reports noted that by 2019 the airport was chronically underused, typically handling no more than one flight per day.
