Chigorodó, CO 🇨🇴 Closed Airport
CO-0062
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146 ft
CO-ANT
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Loading...GPS Code: Not available
Local Code: Not available
Location: 7.619698° N, -76.646633° E
Continent: SA
Type: Closed Airport
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The exact closure date is not officially documented, but it is estimated to have ceased operations in the late 1990s or early 2000s. This period aligns with significant changes in regional security and the consolidation of aviation infrastructure in Colombia.
The closure was likely due to a combination of factors:
1. **Consolidation of Services:** Air traffic and services for the region were centralized at the larger, better-equipped Antonio Roldán Betancur Airport (IATA: APO, ICAO: SKLC) in the nearby municipality of Carepa.
2. **Economic Redundancy:** As the main regional airport was upgraded, the need for smaller, private airstrips like Calamar for passenger and cargo transport diminished.
3. **Security Concerns:** During the height of the Colombian armed conflict, the Urabá region was a strategic corridor for illegal armed groups and drug trafficking. Unregulated or private airstrips were often forcibly closed by state authorities to prevent their use for illicit logistics.
The airport is completely closed and abandoned. The physical runway is still visible in satellite imagery but is in a state of significant disrepair. It is overgrown with grass and vegetation, and sections of the tarmac are cracked or missing. The strip appears to be used informally as a local access road or path by workers in the adjacent banana plantations, which now completely surround the former airfield. There are no remaining buildings, hangars, or aviation facilities on the site.
Calamar Airport was a private airfield primarily linked to the dominant banana industry of the Urabá region. Its historical operations were crucial for the agro-industry and included:
- **Agricultural Aviation:** Its main purpose was likely as a base for crop-dusting (fumigation) aircraft servicing the vast banana plantations surrounding Chigorodó.
- **Logistical Support:** The airstrip facilitated the rapid transport of personnel, technicians, high-value spare parts, and other essential supplies for the large banana-exporting companies operating in the area.
It was part of a network of private airstrips that were vital to the region's economy before road infrastructure improved and air operations were centralized.
There are no known or publicly discussed plans to reopen Calamar Airport. Its role has been entirely superseded by the Antonio Roldán Betancur Airport, which is located just 20 km (12.5 miles) to the north and provides robust commercial passenger and cargo services for Chigorodó and the entire Urabá region. Given the proximity and capacity of the main airport, there is no economic or logistical justification for reinvesting in and reopening this small, defunct airstrip.
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