Guachochi, MX 🇲🇽 Closed Airport
MX-1515
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- ft
MX-CHH
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Loading...GPS Code: Not available
Local Code: Not available
Location: 27.2657° N, -107.21013° E
Continent: NA
Type: Closed Airport
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Circa late 2014 / early 2015. The airstrip was rendered obsolete and effectively closed following the official inauguration of the new Guachochi-Barrancas del Cobre Airport (ICAO: MM51) on November 10, 2014. Operations were progressively transferred to the new facility.
Infrastructural replacement and economic development. A new, modern airport with a 1,500-meter paved runway, lighting, and a terminal building (Guachochi-Barrancas del Cobre Airport) was constructed to better serve the region's growing tourism industry (related to the Copper Canyon) and provide more reliable, all-weather transportation. The old, short, unpaved Siquirichi airstrip was inadequate for larger aircraft and modern safety standards, making it redundant.
The airstrip is permanently closed and abandoned. Recent satellite imagery shows the dirt runway is no longer maintained, with visible vegetation growth and erosion. The site is now open land, and the runway path is used informally as a local road or track by vehicles. There is no remaining aviation infrastructure, such as buildings or markings, on the site.
For many years, the Siquirichi Airstrip was the primary aerial gateway to Guachochi and the surrounding remote communities of the Sierra Tarahumara. It was a vital lifeline, primarily used by small, single-engine, short-takeoff-and-landing (STOL) aircraft such as the Cessna 206 and Helio Courier. Its operations were critical for:
- **Medical Evacuations (Medevac):** Transporting sick or injured individuals from isolated villages to the hospital in Guachochi.
- **Missionary Aviation:** Organizations like the Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) used the strip to provide medical, logistical, and pastoral support to indigenous Rarámuri (Tarahumara) communities.
- **Government and Social Services:** Providing access for doctors, teachers, and government officials.
- **Local Transport:** Serving as an 'air taxi' hub for local residents and the transport of essential goods to areas inaccessible by road.
There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the Siquirichi Airstrip. All regional, state, and federal aviation investment and development efforts are focused on the new, fully operational Guachochi-Barrancas del Cobre Airport (MM51), which serves as the modern hub for the area.