San José de Natora Airport

No official reason for the closure has been published. However, the abandonment of small, remote airstrips like this in Mexico is typically attributed to one or more of the following factors:

1. **Economic Non-viability:** The primary users (likely a local ranch, mine, or small community) may have ceased operations or could no longer afford the cost of maintaining the runway.
2. **Decline in Use:** The original owners or operators may have moved away or no longer required air transport, possibly due to changes in local business activities or personal circumstances.
3. **Security Concerns:** The Sierra Madre Occidental region is known for illicit cartel activities. Unsupervised, remote airstrips are often used for drug trafficking. It is possible the airstrip was intentionally disabled by Mexican military or federal authorities to prevent its use for illegal flights, or abandoned by its owners to avoid association with such activities.

The airport is permanently closed and abandoned. Satellite imagery confirms the site is completely derelict. The dirt runway is no longer maintained, is heavily overgrown with shrubs and other vegetation, and shows signs of significant surface erosion. It is completely unusable for any type of aircraft. There are no visible buildings or infrastructure remaining, and the site has not been repurposed for any other use.

San José de Natora Airport was a private, rural airstrip that served the extremely remote community and ranchería of Natora within the Sahuaripa municipality. Located deep in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains, its significance was purely logistical. It provided a vital connection to the outside world for an area with difficult or non-existent road access. Operations were limited to general aviation, consisting of small, single-engine aircraft (like Cessna or Piper models) capable of landing on a short, unpaved dirt runway. These aircraft would have been used for transporting people, essential supplies, mail, and for medical evacuations, linking the local population to larger towns and cities in Sonora.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the San José de Natora Airport. Given its advanced state of decay, remote location, and the likely economic and security factors that led to its closure, reopening is considered extremely improbable. A significant new economic investment in the immediate area, such as a major mining operation, would be required to justify the substantial cost of rebuilding and maintaining the airstrip, which is not anticipated.