Kabombo, CD 🇨🇩 Closed Airport
ICAO
CD-0058
IATA
-
Elevation
1969 ft
Region
CD-TA
Local Time
Loading...
Loading...GPS Code: Not available
Local Code: Not available
Location: -7.404388° N, 28.031659° E
Continent: Africa
Type: Closed Airport
Help fellow travelers by sharing your experience at Kabombo Airport. Tips are reviewed before publishing.
See what travelers are saying about Kabombo Airport from online reviews
AI-generated summary based on publicly available traveler reviews
Researching traveler experiences online...
No community tips yet for Kabombo Airport.
Be the first to share a helpful tip for fellow travelers!
Loading weather data...
| Designation | Length | Width | Surface | Status |
|---|
| Type | Description | Frequency |
|---|
The exact date of closure is not officially documented. However, it is believed to have fallen into disuse during the period of widespread conflict and economic collapse in the Democratic Republic of Congo, most likely between the 1990s and early 2000s, coinciding with the First and Second Congo Wars.
No single official reason for the closure has been published. The abandonment of Kabombo Airport is characteristic of many remote airfields in the region and was likely caused by a combination of factors:
1. **Economic Decline:** The primary entity that the airport served (e.g., a local mine, plantation, or mission) may have ceased operations, removing the economic justification for the airport's existence.
2. **Political Instability:** The prolonged periods of war and instability in the late 20th and early 21st centuries made operating and maintaining remote infrastructure nearly impossible.
3. **Lack of Maintenance:** Without a consistent user to fund its upkeep, the unpaved runway would have deteriorated due to weather and vegetation growth, eventually becoming unsafe and unusable for aircraft.
The airport is definitively closed and abandoned. Analysis of recent satellite imagery confirms the presence of a former airstrip, approximately 1,100-1,200 meters in length. However, the runway is completely overgrown with grass and shrubs, showing clear signs of erosion and disrepair. There are no visible airport facilities, buildings, or markings remaining. The site is unused and is slowly being reclaimed by the surrounding natural environment.
Kabombo Airport was a small, remote airstrip vital for connecting the isolated Kabombo area to the rest of the country. Its operations were typical for bush airfields in Central Africa. It would have primarily handled small, robust propeller aircraft such as the Cessna 206, Britten-Norman Islander, or Pilatus Porter. Its main functions would have included:
- **Logistical Support:** Transporting essential supplies, equipment, and personnel for local mining, agricultural, or missionary activities.
- **Medical Evacuation:** Providing a critical lifeline for emergency medical transport from the remote community.
- **Administrative Access:** Enabling government officials and aid workers to access a region with a very limited or non-existent road network. It was never a commercial airport with scheduled passenger service but a utilitarian link to the outside world.
There are no known or published plans to rehabilitate or reopen Kabombo Airport. Reopening the airfield would require significant investment to clear the land, regrade and compact the runway surface, and establish basic facilities. Given the lack of a clear economic driver in the immediate vicinity and the immense infrastructure challenges throughout the DRC, the prospects for its reopening are considered extremely low.