Rabinal Airport

Military conversion and obsolescence. The airport's main function was to serve the adjacent military installation, Military Zone 21. After the 1996 peace accords, the military's presence and operational needs in the region were significantly reduced. The base was later converted into the CREOMPAZ (Regional Training Command for Peacekeeping Operations). With no significant civilian or economic demand to justify its maintenance, and with improved road infrastructure, the airstrip lost its strategic purpose and was abandoned.

The site is abandoned and completely non-operational. High-resolution satellite imagery clearly shows the remnants of a single dirt and grass runway. The runway is heavily overgrown with vegetation, crossed by several dirt tracks, and parts of the land, particularly at the northern end, appear to be used for small-scale agriculture. There is no remaining aviation infrastructure such as buildings, hangars, or navigation equipment. The site is an open field that is unusable for aircraft.

The airport was a strategically critical military airstrip during the Guatemalan Civil War (1960-1996). Its primary historical significance is tied to its role in supporting the operations of the adjacent Rabinal military base, a major center for the army's counter-insurgency campaigns in the Baja Verapaz department. The airstrip handled military logistics, including the transport of troops, high-ranking officials, weapons, and supplies into a key conflict zone with difficult terrestrial access. It was an essential piece of infrastructure that enabled the military's sustained presence and mobility in the region.

There are no known or publicly discussed plans to reopen or rehabilitate Rabinal Airport. Guatemala's national aviation development focuses on its international airports and key regional hubs for tourism and commerce. Given the lack of a strong economic driver, the adequate road network to the area, and the site's current state of disrepair, there are no prospects for its reopening in the foreseeable future.