Kenge Airport

The closure was not due to a single event like an accident or military conversion, but rather a 'de facto' closure resulting from a combination of factors:
1. **Economic Collapse:** The national and regional economy could no longer support the subsidized air services that kept such small airfields viable.
2. **Lack of Maintenance:** As a state-owned airfield with an unpaved (dirt/laterite) runway, it required regular maintenance which ceased due to a lack of government funding.
3. **Political Instability:** The Congo Wars disrupted transport networks, destroyed infrastructure, and made routine operations unsafe and logistically impossible.
4. **Deterioration of Infrastructure:** Without maintenance, the runway surface eroded and became overgrown, rendering it unsafe for aircraft landings and takeoffs.

The airport site is permanently closed and no longer recognizable as an airfield from the ground. Satellite imagery confirms that the land has been completely repurposed by urban encroachment. The former runway, taxiways, and apron areas are now covered with residential houses, small buildings, agricultural plots, and footpaths. A local road now cuts directly across the former runway's path. The land has been fully absorbed into the urban fabric of Kenge.

Kenge Airport was a vital administrative and logistical hub for Kenge, the capital of what is now Kwango Province. During its active years, its operations were critical for connecting this regional center to the capital, Kinshasa, and other parts of the country, especially given the often impassable state of the road network.

Operations primarily included:
- **Government and Administrative Flights:** Transporting government officials, documents, and supplies.
- **Light Cargo and Mail:** Moving essential goods, agricultural products from the region, and mail services.
- **Humanitarian and Medical Flights:** Used by NGOs, missionaries, and health organizations for medical evacuations and delivering aid.
- **Small-Scale Passenger Transport:** Serviced by small charter airlines and the former national carrier, Air Zaïre, using STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) aircraft suitable for its approximately 1,300-meter unpaved runway. Typical aircraft would have included the Britten-Norman Islander, de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter, and Cessna aircraft.

There are no known or credible plans to reopen Kenge Airport. The prospect of reopening is virtually zero due to the following reasons:
- **Irreversible Encroachment:** The site is now densely populated with permanent structures. Reclaiming the land would require a massive and costly effort of expropriation and demolition.
- **High Cost of Reconstruction:** The original infrastructure is completely gone. A new airport would have to be built from scratch, including a new runway, terminal, and navigation aids.
- **Economic Viability:** The economic case for rebuilding an airport at this specific location, for the type of traffic it would handle, is extremely weak. Any future project to restore air service to Kenge would likely involve identifying and developing a new, clear site outside the city.